Lionel has been given to about 33,833 people in the United States since 1880. It was most common in 2023, which makes it a current name.
Lionel ranks 659th among American boys in 2025, with 419 born that year. Its best year was 2023, when 609 babies were given the name, ranking 495th. The typical living American called Lionel is about 45 years old today. It is relatively most common in Oregon, where it accounts for 0.03% of births.
Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.