Leonora
Meaning
variant of Eleanor, meaning disputed, traditionally light
Famously borne by Leonora Carrington, the British-Mexican Surrealist who seated a hyena in her self-portrait.
Leonora around the world
One shared root links 9 names across 3 languages.
Shared root: from Occitan Aliénor, Eleanor of Aquitaine's name; the old derivation from Helen is now doubted, and "light" is tradition rather than certainty
The constellation
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Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Leonora peaked in the 1890s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
See popularity in Brazil
Popularity in Brazil
7,785 people · the #2,019 first name in Brazil · about 1 in 26,316 · median age 58
Among people named Leonora living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1960s than in any other decade.
The census also counted 212 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart.
Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
When you meet Leonora
People given the name Leonora in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1950 to 2019. 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 Leonora deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Leonora 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 Leonora fits with your family’s names and surname.
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