Leonor
Meaning
meaning debated, often linked to 'light' or 'compassion'; Leonor, Princess of Asturias, heir to the Spanish throne
The story
Leonor is the Spanish and Portuguese form of Eleanor, an old royal name whose original meaning is genuinely debated: scholars have linked it to words for light and for compassion, and the honest answer is that no one is certain. What is certain is its pedigree, worn by medieval queens of Castile, Aragon and Portugal, and now by Leonor, Princess of Asturias, heir to the Spanish throne, the daughter of King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia who has been preparing for the crown with military training across Spain's army, navy and air force. In American records Leonor has kept a modest, steady presence for over a century, with a small uptick in the last two decades, and it is hard not to notice that the rise coincides with the young princess growing up in public view.
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Leonor peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
16,246 people · the #1,223 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 12,500 · median age 68
Among people named Leonor living in Brazil at the 2022 census, roughly as many were born in the 1940s as in the 1950s, more than in any other decade.
The census also counted 71 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Leonor
People given the name Leonor in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1950 to 2009. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Leonor deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Leonor truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Leonor fits with your family’s names and surname.
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