Thirty years of Leah
Leah in numbers
Leah peaked in 2004 with 2,160 girls and has fallen since, to 273 in 2025. Its biggest three-year fall came between 2004 and 2007, from 2,160 to 1,375. It ranked 35th in 1996, reached 24th in 2002 and ranks 183rd now. On average it was given to 1,625 girls a year in the late 1990s, 1,779 in the 2000s, 731 in the 2010s and 310 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year+3%265 to 273
- 5 years-23%353 to 273
- 10 years-53%575 to 273
- 20 years-87%2,045 to 273
- Since 1996-84%1,705 to 273
- Total, 1996 to 202533,458girls
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 183 · ONS · 265 in 2024
Rank 135 · NRS · 31 in 2024
Rank 140 · NISRA · 17 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 183 | 273 | +3% | 1 in 1,043 |
| 2024 | =184 | 265 | -13% | 1 in 1,093 |
| 2023 | =169 | 305 | -3% | 1 in 944 |
| 2022 | =156 | 315 | -9% | 1 in 936 |
| 2021 | 150 | 346 | -2% | 1 in 881 |
| 2020 | 143 | 353 | -15% | 1 in 848 |
| 2019 | =123 | 414 | +6% | 1 in 752 |
| 2018 | 136 | 389 | -29% | 1 in 821 |
| 2017 | 99 | 546 | -3% | 1 in 606 |
| 2016 | 99 | 564 | -2% | 1 in 601 |
| 2015 | 98 | 575 | -16% | 1 in 591 |
| 2014 | 78 | 683 | -12% | 1 in 496 |
| 2013 * | =71 | 775 | -18% | 1 in 441 |
| 2012 | 64 | 944 | -16% | 1 in 376 |
| 2011 | 56 | 1,120 | -14% | 1 in 315 |
| 2010 | 50 | 1,299 | -6% | 1 in 271 |
| 2009 | 44 | 1,385 | -11% | 1 in 248 |
| 2008 | 38 | 1,559 | +13% | 1 in 222 |
| 2007 | 39 | 1,375 | -14% | 1 in 244 |
| 2006 | 34 | 1,592 | -22% | 1 in 206 |
| 2005 | 25 | 2,045 | -5% | 1 in 154 |
| 2004 | 24 | 2,160 | +14% | 1 in 144 |
| 2003 | 27 | 1,903 | -8% | 1 in 159 |
| 2002 | 24 | 2,060 | +17% | 1 in 141 |
| 2001 | 31 | 1,763 | -10% | 1 in 164 |
| 2000 | 28 | 1,951 | +14% | 1 in 151 |
| 1999 | 32 | 1,715 | +16% | 1 in 176 |
| 1998 | 40 | 1,474 | -8% | n/a |
| 1997 | 36 | 1,605 | -6% | 1 in 195 |
| 1996 | 35 | 1,705 | 1 in 185 |
* ONS’s girls’ 2013 file repeats the May total as April, so the 2013 births total is about 1,360 too high and 1 in X for 2013 is slightly too high. 1 in X is not shown for girls in 1998: one monthly total is missing from the ONS girls’ 1998 file. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Leah
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Leah is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate