Head to head · Girls' names
Lenora vs Lilian
#538 vs #560 in 2025
Lenora is a whisker ahead (#538 vs #560 in 2025), but the curves point different ways: Lenora is back after a long quiet spell, Lilian is holding its place on the charts.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
The tale of the tape
On the charts, Lenora leads 4 measures of 6; Lilian leads 1.
Ranks, counts and years are measured in the official US birth record; the classroom and living figures are estimates computed from it. The dot marks the side each measure favours on the charts — more common, not better.
What the records say
146 years of US births, drawn on one scale
Two curves, one scale
Who owned which decade
- 1880s: Lenora #215, Lilian #445 — Lenora higher
- 1890s: Lenora #261, Lilian #556 — Lenora higher
- 1900s: Lenora #264, Lilian #677 — Lenora higher
- 1910s: Lenora #267, Lilian #750 — Lenora higher
- 1920s: Lenora #267, Lilian #1235 — Lenora higher
- 1930s: Lenora #294, Lilian #2097 — Lenora higher
- 1940s: Lenora #362, Lilian #2418 — Lenora higher
- 1950s: Lenora #413, Lilian #2649 — Lenora higher
- 1960s: Lenora #520, Lilian #2169 — Lenora higher
- 1970s: Lenora #942, Lilian #1922 — Lenora higher
- 1980s: Lenora #1421, Lilian #1685 — Lenora higher
- 1990s: Lenora #2695, Lilian #1065 — Lilian higher
- 2000s: Lenora #3328, Lilian #527 — Lilian higher
- 2010s: Lenora #1716, Lilian #523 — Lilian higher
- 2020s: Lenora #855, Lilian #591 — Lilian higher
Lenora stood higher in 11 of 15 decades; Lilian has held the lead since the 1990s.
Rank by decade
| Decade | Lenora | Lilian |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | #215 | #445 |
| 1890s | #261 | #556 |
| 1900s | #264 | #677 |
| 1910s | #267 | #750 |
| 1920s | #267 | #1235 |
| 1930s | #294 | #2097 |
| 1940s | #362 | #2418 |
| 1950s | #413 | #2649 |
| 1960s | #520 | #2169 |
| 1970s | #942 | #1922 |
| 1980s | #1421 | #1685 |
| 1990s | #2695 | #1065 |
| 2000s | #3328 | #527 |
| 2010s | #1716 | #523 |
| 2020s | #855 | #591 |
Average national rank across each decade. A dash means the name sat outside the recorded top of that decade.
The names themselves
Meaning, roots, sound and the people who carried each
Where each name comes from
Lenora
Not settled; the parent name Eleanor has never had an agreed meaning
Two serious readings compete for Eleanor, and neither has won. One traces the earliest form, Aliénor, to a Latin phrase meaning roughly 'the other Aenor', after the bearer's mother; the other looks to Germanic name elements absorbed into Old French. The familiar gloss 'light' comes from a later association with Helen and is not supported by the name's history.
Aliénor → Eleanor → Eleonora → Leonora → Lenora
How it traveled
The oldest form on record is Aliénor, borne by Eleanor of Aquitaine, who became queen of France and then of England in the twelfth century and carried the name into English use for good. In Italy and Spain it grew into Eleonora and Leonor, and Italian singers and librettists clipped Eleonora down to Leonora — the name Beethoven gave the heroine of the opera that became Fidelio.
Lilian
Either "lily" or a pet form of Elizabeth, depending on which line you follow
Two roads meet at this spelling. The older one runs through Elizabeth: English records from the sixteenth century onward use Lilian and Lillian as familiar forms of that name, alongside Lisbet, Libby and Lily. The other runs through the flower — Latin lilium, the lily, long a symbol of purity in Christian art — which is how most parents read the name today. Both are genuine; neither cancels the other.
Elisabeth → Elizabeth → Lily → Lilian
How it traveled
The name grew up in England as a household nickname. Elizabeth was overwhelmingly common there, and it splintered into dozens of pet forms — Lily among them, and from Lily, Lilian.
Where a reading is contested the note says so — this page does not turn a guess into a fact. The chain is each name's recorded forms, oldest first; the story is its opening, told in full on the name's own page.
Out loud, and in short
Lenora
luh-NOR-uh
Stress falls on the middle syllable. Some families say lee-NOR-uh, and both are accepted; neither is a correction of the other.
- Nora — The everyday short form, and a very well established given name in its own right.
- Lenny — Informal and family-level; more often heard for boys named Leonard, so it reads as a household nickname rather than a public one.
- Lena — Taken from the first half; also stands alone as a given name across Europe and the US.
- Nonie — An old-fashioned pet form of the Nora names, used chiefly within families.
- Also Leni.
Lilian
LIL-ee-un
Stress on the first syllable. Some families say it in two beats, LIL-yun; both are ordinary and neither needs correcting.
- Lily — The most used short form, and a very well established given name on its own — which means a Lilian who goes by Lily is often assumed to be a Lily.
- Lil — Informal, family-and-friends register; long attested for Lilian and Lillian alike.
- Lilli — Informal, and standard as an independent name in German-speaking countries.
- Ana — Used mainly by speakers of the Liliana form rather than of Lilian itself.
Is it right for you
The differences that decide it, laid out by what you want
Choose by what you want
Choose Lenora if you want…
- a name most people already know#538 in 2025, 562 babies that year
- a name on the way upup 576 places on the charts in five years
Choose Lilian if you want…
- a name fewer children share#560 in 2025 — lilian will almost certainly be the only one in school
- a name holding steadyLilian is holding its place on the charts
Each line is a measured difference between the two names — a rank, a count, a recorded form — never a judgement of either. Save the one that answers your question; it lands on your shortlist.
The trade-offs, name by name
Lenora
Strengths
- Comes with Nora already attached — a short form in genuine, independent use, so nothing has to be invented.
- Spelled the way it sounds in English, which spares it the Leonor/Eleonore hesitation that its continental cousins meet.
- Unbroken presence in American records since the earliest lists, so it has never had to be reintroduced.
To consider
- Lenora, Leonora, Lenore and Leonor are four different names that sound close, and she will spend some of her life saying which one it is. Worth deciding early how firmly you want to hold the spelling.
- Nora is far more common on its own, and a child called Lenora may well be addressed as Nora by teachers, teammates and eventually herself. Fine if you like Nora too; something to sit with if you don't.
- Right now the name is still strongly represented among older generations, so it may be read as a grandmother's name in some rooms and as a fresh find in others.
Lilian
Strengths
- The short form Lily is already familiar everywhere, so no explaining is needed — it comes with the name rather than having to be invented.
- Documented in English since the sixteenth century and in continuous use since, without a period of disuse to explain away.
- Recognizable across languages through Liliana, Liliane and Lilianna, which helps in bilingual families.
To consider
- Lillian, with two Ls, is far more common in the United States. Expect the doubled spelling to be the default guess on forms, emails and class lists, and expect to correct it politely for life.
- Lily is extremely popular as a standalone name, so a Lilian who uses the short form may effectively be one of several Lilys in a room even while remaining the only Lilian.
- In French, Lilian is a masculine given name and Liliane the feminine one — worth knowing if the family has French-speaking connections, though in the US the spelling reads as a girl's name without hesitation.
Documented properties of each name — how it spells, travels and shortens — not opinions about the child.
With your last name
Say both in full. The notes are facts about letters and sound — a rhyme, a shared initial, the monogram — not a verdict on either name.
Type a last name to hear Lenora and Lilian in full.
Weighing the whole shortlist? Run the full comparison — up to eight names with your last name, initials, classroom projections and a printable report.
Decide together
Nobody names a baby alone
Still torn between Lenora and Lilian?
Put both to the vote.
One link to your partner, your parents, your sister. Each of them gets the two names, a one-tap answer and room to say why — and every reply lands in one place.
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More than two in the running? Settle it with a bracket or run the full comparison with your last name.
More head-to-heads
Same measures, different pair. Sixty more are dealt daily in the arena.
Lists that carry both names
Every list here names both Lenora and Lilian — the same style, ranked by the same records.
Lenora or Lilian — the short answers
- Which is more popular, Lenora or Lilian?
- Lenora, in 2025: Lenora ranked #538 with 562 babies; Lilian ranked #560 with 537 babies.
- Which name is rising faster, Lenora or Lilian?
- Lenora. Over the last five years Lenora moved up 576 places; Lilian moved up 96 places.
- Which is the older name, Lenora or Lilian?
- The US record cannot say: both were already in use when it began in 1880.
- How many people are named Lenora and Lilian?
- About 17,500 people named Lenora are estimated to be alive in the US today. About 18,000 people named Lilian are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- Will there be other Lenoras or Lilians in the classroom?
- Lenora will almost certainly be the only one in school. Lilian will almost certainly be the only one in school.
US figures from the Social Security Administration, 1880–2025. Votes are battle voters on this site, not the birth record. Data & methodology
Keep playing
Sixty more head-to-heads are dealt in the arena every day — or line up Lenora, Lilian and the rest of your shortlist with your last name in one printable report.
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