Fun Facts About the Name Lotus
- More than 2 thousand babies named Lotus: U.S. records list 2,974 babies given the name Lotus from 1880 through 2025. Even 211 boys received the name Lotus - about 1 boy for every 13 girls.
What Does the Name Lotus Mean?
Lotus is an English word name taken from the name of the lotus plant. The plant word comes from Greek λωτός (lōtos), which passed into Latin as lotus and from there into English.
In Greek, lōtos was not the name of one plant. It was used for the jujube tree (Ziziphus lotus), for the plant eaten by the lotus-eaters of Greek legend, and for water lilies. The deeper origin of the Greek word is not securely known. It may have been borrowed from another Mediterranean or Semitic language, but no derivation is agreed on, so the name's literal meaning is simply the plant itself.
Associations often attached to the name, such as purity, enlightenment, or forgetfulness, come from later religious and literary use of the lotus, not from the word's etymology.
Lotus Name History & Origins
The Greek word lōtos is best known from Homer's Odyssey, where the Lotophagi, or lotus-eaters, eat a fruit that makes them forget their homeland. Herodotus later placed the lotus-eaters on the coast of Libya. Greek writers also used lōtos for the jujube and for other plants, and the same word, through Latin, was later applied by European writers to the Egyptian water lily (Nymphaea lotus).
The sacred lotus of Asia (Nelumbo nucifera) is a different plant, but it took the name "lotus" in European languages through botanical writing and translation. In Hinduism and Buddhism the lotus stands for purity and spiritual awakening, and the Sanskrit padma and Hindi kamal are used as personal names with that meaning; these are separate names, not sources of the English word.
As a given name in English, Lotus is uncommon and belongs with other plant and flower names. It also appears as a surname. Its use as a first name is not tied to a single literary work or religious tradition.
How Popular is the Name Lotus?
Lotus has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2023. Its best rank was #1,025 in 1896.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,826 | 110 | 0.0068% |
| 2024 | #1,663 | 123 | 0.0076% |
| 2023 | #1,528 | 140 | 0.0087% |
| 2022 | #1,771 | 117 | 0.0071% |
| 2021 | #1,519 | 139 | 0.0085% |
| 2020 | #2,143 | 85 | 0.0053% |
| 2019 | #2,149 | 87 | 0.0052% |
| 2018 | #1,960 | 101 | 0.0059% |
| 2017 | #1,786 | 117 | 0.0068% |
| 2016 | #2,161 | 90 | 0.0051% |
| 2015 | #2,307 | 81 | 0.0045% |
| 2014 | #2,086 | 93 | 0.0052% |
| 2013 | #2,044 | 95 | 0.0054% |
| 2012 | #2,616 | 69 | 0.0039% |
| 2011 | #3,336 | 49 | 0.0028% |
| 2010 | #3,185 | 52 | 0.0029% |
| 2009 | #2,795 | 64 | 0.0035% |
| 2008 | #3,245 | 52 | 0.0028% |
| 2007 | #3,758 | 43 | 0.0022% |
| 2006 | #4,528 | 32 | 0.0017% |
| 2005 | #4,165 | 34 | 0.0018% |
| 2004 | #5,313 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2003 | #6,207 | 19 | 0.0010% |
| 2002 | #6,033 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 2001 | #7,181 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2000 | #8,340 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1999 | #9,212 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1998 | #8,998 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #8,761 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1995 | #9,216 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1994 | #12,732 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1993 | #14,796 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1990 | #12,271 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #13,007 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1984 | #9,845 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1983 | #11,246 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1982 | #11,503 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #11,378 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #7,819 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1977 | #9,135 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1976 | #4,259 | 15 | 0.0010% |
| 1973 | #5,401 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1972 | #6,300 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1971 | #7,031 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1966 | #6,235 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1965 | #7,110 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1963 | #7,197 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1960 | #5,474 | 7 | 0.0003% |
| 1959 | #6,822 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1958 | #6,629 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1957 | #5,796 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1956 | #4,683 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1955 | #3,942 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1954 | #3,860 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 1952 | #3,995 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1951 | #3,629 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1950 | #2,850 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1948 | #2,780 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1947 | #5,761 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1946 | #2,820 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1945 | #3,287 | 9 | 0.0007% |
| 1944 | #4,330 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1943 | #3,172 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1942 | #3,119 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1941 | #3,806 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1940 | #2,165 | 15 | 0.0013% |
| 1939 | #2,004 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1938 | #2,675 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1937 | #1,965 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1936 | #2,341 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1935 | #1,746 | 20 | 0.0019% |
| 1934 | #2,050 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1933 | #2,346 | 13 | 0.0013% |
| 1932 | #1,727 | 21 | 0.0020% |
| 1931 | #1,717 | 21 | 0.0020% |
| 1930 | #2,628 | 12 | 0.0011% |
| 1929 | #2,061 | 17 | 0.0015% |
| 1928 | #2,057 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1927 | #2,394 | 15 | 0.0013% |
| 1926 | #1,856 | 22 | 0.0019% |
| 1925 | #1,522 | 30 | 0.0025% |
| 1924 | #1,962 | 21 | 0.0017% |
| 1923 | #1,997 | 20 | 0.0017% |
| 1922 | #1,706 | 25 | 0.0021% |
| 1921 | #1,749 | 25 | 0.0020% |
| 1920 | #1,990 | 20 | 0.0017% |
| 1919 | #1,892 | 20 | 0.0018% |
| 1918 | #2,163 | 17 | 0.0015% |
| 1917 | #1,629 | 23 | 0.0021% |
| 1916 | #1,390 | 28 | 0.0027% |
| 1915 | #1,501 | 24 | 0.0024% |
| 1914 | #1,700 | 16 | 0.0021% |
| 1913 | #1,843 | 12 | 0.0019% |
| 1912 | #1,677 | 12 | 0.0022% |
| 1911 | #1,880 | 8 | 0.0019% |
| 1909 | #2,112 | 6 | 0.0017% |
| 1907 | #1,961 | 6 | 0.0019% |
| 1902 | #1,934 | 5 | 0.0019% |
| 1901 | #1,188 | 9 | 0.0038% |
| 1897 | #1,689 | 5 | 0.0021% |
| 1896 | #1,025 | 11 | 0.0046% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #4,631 | 22 | 0.0013% |
| 2024 | #4,969 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2023 | #5,173 | 19 | 0.0011% |
| 2022 | #6,351 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2021 | #4,180 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 2020 | #6,866 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2019 | #6,286 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2018 | #9,316 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2017 | #7,919 | 10 | 0.0005% |
| 2016 | #10,320 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2014 | #13,277 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2013 | #13,296 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2012 | #13,447 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2011 | #13,560 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2009 | #11,899 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2008 | #13,795 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 2005 | #12,594 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1928 | #3,970 | 6 | 0.0005% |
| 1923 | #3,679 | 7 | 0.0006% |
| 1921 | #4,715 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1915 | #3,667 | 6 | 0.0007% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Lotus Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You always bring to completion anything you start. You are generous but like to see returns from your giving. You have an executive ability, you are a leader. You are moral, balanced, honest and intellectual, and you may attain spirituality. You are wise and practical with an appreciation of beauty. You always think before you act. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
You find the best contentment in life when you own your own home and provide well for your family and loved ones. You have a great sense of responsibility and duty. You are comforting, appreciative and affectionate. Your obligation in life is to hold justice and truth, and if you follow the Law, you can find the great happiness and satisfaction.
✦ Lotus's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Lotus's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.