# Linus (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/linus/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | Latin |
| Meaning | not recorded |
| Pronunciation | /ˈlaɪ.nəs/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Linos, Linum, Linon |
| US babies named this | 5,342 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 5,342 / 0 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 405, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Latin Linus, Ancient Greek Λῖνος (Lînos), of uncertain meaning.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 126 | 1,349 |
| 2012 | 141 | 1,257 |
| 2013 | 130 | 1,325 |
| 2014 | 163 | 1,160 |
| 2015 | 163 | 1,155 |
| 2016 | 131 | 1,363 |
| 2017 | 166 | 1,147 |
| 2018 | 147 | 1,259 |
| 2019 | 112 | 1,520 |
| 2020 | 124 | 1,405 |
| 2021 | 113 | 1,550 |
| 2022 | 126 | 1,442 |
| 2023 | 114 | 1,542 |
| 2024 | 129 | 1,425 |
| 2025 | 82 | 1,913 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 23 | 1,124 |
| 2012 | 22 | 1,191 |
| 2013 | 21 | 1,183 |
| 2014 | 24 | 1,117 |
| 2015 | 13 | 1,786 |
| 2016 | 7 | 2,804 |
| 2017 | 15 | 1,627 |
| 2018 | 14 | 1,683 |
| 2019 | 8 | 2,488 |
| 2020 | 10 | 2,076 |
| 2021 | 10 | 2,125 |
| 2022 | 3 | 4,789 |
| 2023 | 8 | 2,546 |
| 2024 | 6 | 3,254 |
| 2025 | 5 | 3,684 |

## In other languages

- Bulgarian: Ли́нус
- Esperanto: Lino
- Finnish: Linus
- German: Linus
- Greek: Λίνος
- Italian: Lino
- Polish: Linus
- Portuguese: Lino
- Russian: Лин
- Swedish: Linus
- Vietnamese: Linô

## People named Linus

- Linus Torvalds, Finnish software engineer (born 1969)
- Linus Pauling, American scientist (1901–1994)
- Linus, 2nd Pope of the Catholic Church
- Linus Roache, English actor
- Linus Sebastian, Canadian YouTuber
- Linus Straßer, German alpine skier
- Linus Gechter, German association football player
- Linus Yale, American mechanical engineer (1821–1868)
- Linus Butt, German field hockey player (1987-)
- Joe Barton, American politician; U.S. Representative for Texas

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.