boy's name
Lance
LANSS
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 1
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 108,404
the United States
#862
2025 births
Lance does not mean a spear. It shortens Lancelot, whose first element is a Germanic word for land — the weapon reading is a coincidence of English vocabulary, not a derivation. It holds 106,917 lifetime births in our records.
- Lance is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in 1970, when 4,173 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 11,883 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1899.
- 1 syllable, with the stress on syllable 1.
Lance over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1890s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1890s | 5 |
| 1900s | 61 |
| 1910s | 184 |
| 1920s | 302 |
| 1930s | 868 |
| 1940s | 4,184 |
| 1950s | 9,737 |
| 1960s | 20,102 |
| 1970s | 21,913 |
| 1980s | 19,573 |
| 1990s | 12,112 |
| 2000s | 10,547 |
| 2010s | 4,784 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,812 |
What Lance means
Lance means land, from a Germanic root, carried through Lancelot. The weapon of the same spelling is a separate word and contributes nothing to the name's sense.
Where Lance comes from
Lance shortens Lancelot, which is usually derived from the Germanic land with a French diminutive, giving something like little land-holder. The weapon called a lance comes from the Latin lancea, a light spear that may itself be a Celtic borrowing, and it has no connection to the name — the resemblance is accidental and the association with knights made it look inevitable. Lancelot enters Arthurian legend late, through Chrétien de Troyes in the twelfth century, and is absent from the earlier Welsh material.
Lance in use
Lance peaked in the United States in 1970, when 4,173 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It charts in three of the seven markets we track — 862nd in the United States on 279 births, 1303rd in Canada and 2068th in England and Wales on 12 — across 108,404 lifetime births. Our records carry it from 1899.
How popular is Lance?
In 2025, Lance was given to 279 babies in the United States, ranking #862 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Lance is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Lance
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Lance also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Lance over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Lance in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
- French
- Lancelot
Sibling names for Lance
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Lance — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Lance
What does the name Lance mean?
Land — from a Germanic root, through Lancelot. Not the weapon.
Is Lance related to the spear?
No. The weapon comes from the Latin lancea, and the resemblance is accidental.
Is Lancelot an original Arthurian figure?
No — he enters through Chrétien de Troyes in the twelfth century and is absent from the earlier Welsh material.
How popular is Lance?
862nd in the United States, down from a 1970 peak of 4,160 births.
Is Lance a girl's or a boy's name?
Lance is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Lance?
Lance has 1 syllable.
Is Lance a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Lance currently ranks #862 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.