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Lex

boy name
Origin
Greek
Syllables
1
Peak era
2000s/2020s
Today
▬ Steady

Meaning

short form of Alexander, Greek for 'defender of the people'

The story

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The formal names behind Lex

Lex is an established short form of this name.

Alexander · Greek origin · "defender of men," from alexein, to ward off, and aner, man; spread across three continents by Alexander the Great and worn by kings, tsars, and popes since. A grand classic that shrinks obligingly to Alex, Xander, Sasha, and Sandy

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Lex around the world

One shared root links 18 names across 7 languages.

Shared root: from Greek Alexandros "defender of men" (alexein "to ward off" + aner "man"), spread from Macedon into every European tradition

The constellation

LexEnglish · short formAlexanderEnglishAleksanderPolishAlejandroSpanish
14 more branches of this family
AlexandraEnglish · feminine formAlexandriaEnglish · related formAlejandraSpanish · feminine formAlexandroSpanish · variantAlexEnglish · short formAlecScottish · short formAlexaEnglish · short formSashaRussian · diminutiveSandraItalian · short formSandyEnglish · diminutiveLexiEnglish · diminutiveLexieEnglish · diminutiveXanderDutch · short formZanderEnglish · variant

Popularity, 1890–2024

1890speak 2000s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Lex peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.

See popularity in Brazil

Popularity in Brazil

85 people · the #46,211 first name in Brazil · median age 23

2000s

Among people named Lex living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 2000s than in any other decade.

Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

Names that fit alongside Lex

Alex Nick Greg Max Phil Tad

The Lex deep dive

Written for you · $1.99 →

Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Lex 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 Lex fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

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