Lux
Feminine · “light”
Lux is given to both — 1,653 girls and 1,528 boys since 1880. See Lux as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Lux is the Latin for light, and it is three letters that have been doing serious work for a very long time — in Roman poetry, in the opening of Genesis in Latin, and now on the back of a light meter as a unit of illumination.
How old is the name Lux?
Lux first appears in US birth records in 2001 — 24 years ago. The typical Lux is a kid of about 8 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,600 people named Lux are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Lux most popular?
Lux peaked in 2014, reaching #1684 nationally. Today it ranks #2895, 1,211 places below that high. See the whole 2014 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Lux
Lux is the word in the Latin Bible's fiat lux, let there be light, and it appears on university mottoes, coats of arms and church inscriptions across Europe for that reason. It was never a Roman personal name — Romans used the derived Lucius and Lucia instead — so its use as a given name is entirely modern, part of the current American appetite for short Latin words used directly: Lux, Vera, Nova, Ever. It is given to daughters far more often than sons.
Meaning
light
Latin lux, lucis, 'light', from an Indo-European root that also gives Greek leukos, 'bright', and English light itself. The word stands behind Lucy, Lucius, Lucia, lucid and elucidate. It is also the modern scientific unit of illuminance. The reading is exact and undisputed.
Pronouncing Lux
LUKS
One syllable, rhyming with ducks. There is no ambiguity in it, and English speakers say it correctly at first sight.
Nicknames for Lux
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 2001
- Most girls named
- 2014125 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1684reached in 2014
- Change vs 2024
- −3.3%58 in 2025, from 60
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Lux in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Lux in Latin — same name
- Lucy in English — related form
- Luce in Italian — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Ohio.
Luxs among us
people named Lux are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 27,712 born in 2025 was named Lux
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Jeanelle test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Lux's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Jeanelle climbed just as high around 1939, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Jeanelle's path sketches the road Lux is walking now.
Lux sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Lux is headed
Lux is easing off slowly — about 21% fewer babies a year by 2030 if the trend continues.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Lux beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Lux in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- Three letters, one syllable, and impossible to mispronounce or misspell.
- An exact and beautiful meaning with a very long documented history.
- Pairs cleanly with a long surname, as short first names generally do.
- It is also a brand of soap in much of the world, which comes up.
- It was never a Roman personal name, so it is a modern use of an ancient word.
- One syllable leaves nothing to shorten and no longer form to grow into.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Lux
Feminine · #2895 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Luxs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,600 people named Lux are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Lux in 2025?
- Lux ranks #2895 among US girl names in 2025, with 58 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Lux?
- About 1 in every 27,712 US girls born in 2025 was named Lux — 58 in all.
- Will my child share the name Lux with classmates?
- Lux will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Lux
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Noora#2895 · Mylie#2895 · Vanellope#2895 · Amore#2895 · Miamor#2895 · Alyah#2895 · Alaska#2895 · Anastacia#2895
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Lux? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Lux and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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