Discover and Shortlist Your Perfect Baby Names!

Lance as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Lance

Add to my Name List

The baby name Lance is a Male name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced /læns/ (LANS).

Lance is English, French, Latin in Origin.

Gender: Male
Syllables: 1.0
Origin: English, French, Latin
Pronunciation: /læns/ (LANS)

What is the meaning of the name Lance ?

The baby name Lance is a Male name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced /læns/ (LANS).

Lance is English, French, Latin in Origin.

Lance is an English masculine name with layered etymology. As a word, it comes from Old French lance, ultimately from Latin lancea, “spear,” probably of Iberian origin. As a personal name it also functions as a short form of Lancelot from medieval French romance, and can trace to the Germanic hypocoristic Lanzo built on the element land “territory.” Together these strands give Lance the sense of “spear” or “land.”

In Britain the name surfaced through Arthurian legend; the clipped form gained steady use in the modern era and surged in the United States in the mid-20th century before settling into occasional popularity across the English-speaking world. Variants and related forms include Lancelot, Lanzo, Lanz, Lantz, and the medieval Lancelin; Lanny serves as a familiar nickname. Cognates appear in French (Lancelot) and German/Italian (Lanzo).

Lance has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Lance

Lance Reddick Musician · Born 1962 · United States Lance Reddick was an American actor best known for his standout TV roles, especially Cedric Daniels in The Wire. He also played Phillip Broyles in Fringe and Chief Irvin Irving in Bosch.

Lance – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Boys 2005 #1 585
BN 0 #32 1 2,297
MO 0 #49 4 2,706
JM 0 #76 12 3,714
JP 0 #76 2 4,057
PH 0 #82 15 5,607
CN 0 #84 3 3,857
TW 0 #97 7 4,523
QA 0 #105 2 7,011
BN Girls 0 #114 1 5,459
HU 0 #115 1 1,675
OM 0 #119 3 6,215
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
EE Boys 0 #125 1 2,087
CY Boys 0 #131 1 3,473
BN Boys 0 #133 7 6,332
PH Boys 0 #144 307 11,440
CR 0 #149 10 5,526
LT Boys 0 #151 1 2,166
JM Boys 0 #152 133 6,876
BW Boys 0 #153 2 4,685
HU Boys 0 #173 2 3,954
Sweden Boys 2020 #174 4 1,548
MT Boys 0 #178 2 4,064
PR Boys 0 #178 1 2,508
AE 0 #180 8 10,220
CZ 0 #185 2 3,154
MO Boys 0 #188 36 5,842
TW Boys 0 #191 51 7,111
LU Boys 0 #215 6 4,970
NA Boys 0 #218 18 6,830
CN Boys 0 #227 96 9,639
IR 0 #230 2 4,221
SG 0 #245 25 11,010
AO Boys 0 #247 3 5,568
HR Boys 0 #259 1 3,997
MO Girls 0 #262 2 7,056
ZA 0 #266 183 14,421
NG 0 #270 3 5,926
GR Boys 0 #273 1 6,912
IL 0 #282 1 6,291
SA 0 #284 12 10,560
TW Girls 0 #288 2 8,139
Canada Boys 2024 #289 18 2,588
JP Boys 0 #295 9 7,909
KZ Boys 0 #295 2 6,578
AL Boys 0 #303 1 5,122
CZ Boys 0 #305 1 6,530
MY 0 #313 18 12,352
DK Boys 0 #331 2 7,401
PL Boys 0 #336 5 6,459
QA Girls 0 #336 8 15,378
HK 0 #350 8 8,483
CN Girls 0 #354 6 8,829
GH Boys 0 #354 8 8,138
PH Girls 0 #368 23 13,098
PT Boys 0 #378 4 7,951
JO Boys 0 #387 3 7,057
France Boys 2020 #389 3 2,846
ZA Boys 0 #395 1,413 25,619
YE 0 #398 1 8,639
BO 0 #408 1 6,868
EG 0 #412 1 6,387
UY Boys 0 #413 1 5,922
CR Boys 0 #418 70 10,188
OM Girls 0 #422 3 15,987
HK Boys 0 #452 76 12,905
AR Boys 0 #483 1 7,628
SG Boys 0 #483 221 17,960
RU Boys 0 #496 10 12,621
GT Boys 0 #499 1 7,625
KW Girls 0 #500 16 19,177
PA Boys 0 #502 4 9,305
CO 0 #510 1 7,768
PA Girls 0 #518 1 9,861
IQ Girls 0 #524 2 11,303
BH 0 #529 25 17,937
PS Boys 0 #530 19 10,655
AE Girls 0 #541 13 20,968
PS Girls 0 #547 1 10,981
LY 0 #557 3 12,703
CM Girls 0 #560 1 11,671
IR Boys 0 #563 3 10,162
CM Boys 0 #570 6 12,054
SG Girls 0 #574 13 18,916
HK Girls 0 #596 20 16,104
IL Boys 0 #598 10 10,983
BD Boys 0 #604 2 10,045
United States Boys 2024 #613 290 7,044
BO Boys 0 #619 4 9,244
IL Girls 0 #645 1 11,648
IQ Boys 0 #657 11 13,071
QA Boys 0 #661 47 18,093
Finland Boys 2026 #671 12 3,552
LB 0 #686 5 13,263
CL Boys 0 #693 8 13,390
KW Boys 0 #714 56 18,755
BR Boys 0 #780 6 12,213
NG Girls 0 #823 4 15,093
OM Boys 0 #850 32 17,948
TN 0 #864 2 13,765
EG Boys 0 #869 18 15,035
NL Boys 0 #894 58 5,873
SA Girls 0 #897 39 25,931
Germany Boys 0 #907 46 5,697
Spain Boys 0 #908 23 5,610
NG Boys 0 #909 43 16,906
CO Boys 0 #910 11 15,656
United States Girls 2004 #912 5 9,828
MY Boys 0 #914 199 25,439
PE Boys 0 #918 9 14,506
MX Boys 0 #965 18 16,355
BR Girls 0 #992 1 12,708
AE Boys 0 #1,008 85 22,615
PE Girls 0 #1,010 1 14,861
IN Boys 0 #1,031 9 16,750
MY Girls 0 #1,065 8 24,821
MA 0 #1,118 11 20,986
ZA Girls 0 #1,126 16 25,928
CO Girls 0 #1,152 1 16,140
DZ 0 #1,226 9 20,130
TR 0 #1,247 8 19,440
MX Girls 0 #1,266 2 17,781
SA Boys 0 #1,289 327 28,008
IT Boys 0 #1,383 89 10,046

Lance is popular in 74 countries — most recent births per country:

Canada
United States
France
Scotland, United Kingdom
Sweden

Did we miss something about this name? Let us know!

People also ask about Lance

Lance is predominantly a boy's name.
Lance is a one syllable name, pronounced /læns/ (LANS).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Lancelot, Lancey, Lanson, Lantz and Lanz.
Across languages, Lance has these equivalents: Lancelot (French), Lanz / Lantz (German), Lanza (Spanish), Gerard (Germanic, 'brave with a spear'), Gerald (Germanic, 'rule of the spear').
Yes, very popular — Lance ranked #1 in Ireland in 2005, and appears in official birth registries across 8 countries.
Lance ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2005).
Lance's popularity is rising significantly. It moved from #302 in 2014 to #289 in 2024 in Canada.
Yes — 1 notable people named Lance are in our database, including Lance Reddick (Musician).