How Many People Are Named Lightning?
An estimated 11 people in the United States have the first name Lightning. It is almost exclusively a male name. The average bearer is 5 years old, and Lightning peaked in popularity in 2021 with 6 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Lightning as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Lightning paired with any surname.
Key Insights
- Lightning is exceptionally rare. Fewer than 100 people with this name are estimated to be alive in the U.S. today.
Estimated Living Americans
11
About 1 in 31,159,485 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Very Rare
Predicted Gender
Male
100.0% confidence
Average Age
5
years old
Peak Year
2021
6 births
Total Registered
11
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Lightning
Lightning is almost exclusively a male name. Out of 11 total births registered, 100.0% were male.
Lightning as a male name
Ranked #13,543 in 2022
5 male births in 2022
Peak: 2021 (6 births)
Lightning: Popularity Over Time
Lightning by Decade
How has Lightning tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
| Decade | Total | Male | Female | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 11 | 11 | 0 | |
Lightning + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Lightning as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Lightning
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
Lightning: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Lightning?
We estimate approximately 11 people named Lightning are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 31,159,485 Americans share this first name.
Is Lightning a common name?
Lightning is classified as "Very Rare" and is more popular than 30.8% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 11 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Lightning most popular?
Lightning reached peak popularity in 2021, when 6 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Lightning is approximately 5 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Lightning a male name?
Lightning is predominantly male. 100.0% of people with this name are male. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Lightning Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Lightning Smith, Lightning Johnson, Lightning Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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