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Ling as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Ling

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The baby name Ling is a Female name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced líng (Pinyin: líng, tone 2; approximate English: "ling"; IPA: /liŋ/).

Ling is Chinese in Origin.

Gender: Female
Syllables: 1.0
Origin: Chinese
Pronunciation: líng (Pinyin: líng, tone 2; approximate English: "ling"; IPA: /liŋ/)

What is the meaning of the name Ling ?

The baby name Ling is a Female name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced líng (Pinyin: líng, tone 2; approximate English: "ling"; IPA: /liŋ/).

Ling is Chinese in Origin.

Ling is a pan-Chinese given name and surname, romanized from several characters including 玲, 灵/靈, 铃/鈴, 伶, 岭/嶺, 苓, or 令. Meanings range from “tinkling of jade” and “bell” to “spirit, clever, alert,” “actor,” or “mountain ridge.” As a given name it is unisex, though 玲 and 铃 have made it especially popular for girls in the mid‑ to late‑20th century in mainland China and across the Chinese diaspora. As a surname, Ling most commonly represents 凌 (Líng).

Variants and related forms include duplicated pet names like Ling‑ling, dialectal spellings such as Leng, and Vietnamese Linh (靈), a cognate meaning “soul; sacred.” Japanese given names using 玲 are read Rei or Rin, offering semantic but not phonetic parallels. An unrelated English word-name Ling comes from Old Norse lyng “heather,” occasionally adopted in 19th‑century nature naming. Overall, Ling evokes brightness, musicality, and quick‑witted spirit.

Ling has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Ling

Bai Ling Actor · Born 1966 · United States Bai Ling is a Chinese American actress best known for her film work, especially Red Corner. She first appeared in many Chinese productions before taking roles in American films like The Crow, Nixon, and later the lead in Red Corner.

Ling – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
FJ 0 #6 1 374
HK Girls 0 #7 5,805 16,104
MO Girls 0 #20 431 7,056
MO 0 #31 22 2,706
BN 0 #32 1 2,297
ID 0 #39 1 2,238
TW Girls 0 #50 347 8,139
TW 0 #51 50 4,523
CN 0 #60 26 3,857
MY Girls 0 #68 3,773 24,821
HK 0 #74 432 8,483
JP 0 #77 1 4,057
BN Girls 0 #78 29 5,459
ID Girls 0 #80 19 3,319
MY 0 #82 305 12,352
CN Girls 0 #93 445 8,829
SG Girls 0 #98 1,104 18,916
QA 0 #106 1 7,011
PH 0 #107 4 5,607
GE Girls 0 #108 1 1,564
BN Boys 0 #111 23 6,332
HU 0 #115 1 1,675
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
OM 0 #121 1 6,215
SG 0 #127 155 11,010
MU 0 #137 1 3,613
BW Girls 0 #151 1 4,216
MT Girls 0 #153 1 3,773
BW Boys 0 #154 1 4,685
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
AE 0 #182 6 10,220
LU Girls 0 #189 2 4,850
MO Boys 0 #204 20 5,842
DK 0 #206 1 5,198
TW Boys 0 #212 30 7,111
AO Girls 0 #217 1 4,575
LU Boys 0 #220 1 4,970
HU Girls 0 #224 2 3,308
PS 0 #224 3 5,692
BG Girls 0 #231 1 3,559
JP Girls 0 #231 15 6,592
NA Girls 0 #237 1 7,146
CN Boys 0 #239 83 9,639
EC Boys 0 #246 1 3,322
AO Boys 0 #248 2 5,568
GR Girls 0 #249 1 6,293
HK Boys 0 #256 404 12,905
MY Boys 0 #272 1,668 25,439
IL 0 #282 1 6,291
HR Girls 0 #294 1 3,687
QA Girls 0 #301 16 15,378
SA 0 #311 2 10,560
DK Girls 0 #322 8 7,429
PE 0 #329 1 6,350
DK Boys 0 #331 2 7,401
GH Girls 0 #337 1 6,973
JO Girls 0 #339 1 7,570
CZ Girls 0 #348 4 5,378
GH Boys 0 #361 1 8,138
MU Girls 0 #361 2 8,539
PH Girls 0 #362 29 13,098
PL Girls 0 #363 2 5,096
MU Boys 0 #366 4 8,477
SG Boys 0 #375 371 17,960
OM Girls 0 #380 17 15,987
PT Boys 0 #381 1 7,951
PH Boys 0 #404 5 11,440
BO 0 #407 2 6,868
EG 0 #412 1 6,387
France Girls 2014 #415 3 3,259
CL 0 #434 1 6,867
MX 0 #445 1 8,339
PT Girls 0 #466 6 7,952
SD Boys 0 #466 1 10,523
PA Girls 0 #470 12 9,861
ZA 0 #474 1 14,421
KW Girls 0 #486 30 19,177
AE Girls 0 #501 53 20,968
PA Boys 0 #502 4 9,305
CO 0 #508 3 7,768
CR Boys 0 #510 1 10,188
RU Girls 0 #521 3 11,913
RU Boys 0 #522 5 12,621
IQ Girls 0 #524 2 11,303
BH 0 #538 16 17,937
IR Girls 0 #544 2 8,334
PS Girls 0 #547 1 10,981
LY 0 #559 1 12,703
PS Boys 0 #560 2 10,655
CR Girls 0 #565 9 11,342
CM Boys 0 #573 3 12,054
BD Boys 0 #604 2 10,045
BO Boys 0 #618 5 9,244
IL Boys 0 #622 4 10,983
AR Girls 0 #625 6 8,289
IL Girls 0 #644 2 11,648
BO Girls 0 #646 6 9,488
IN Girls 0 #653 2 13,121
LB 0 #688 3 13,263
IQ Boys 0 #695 3 13,071
CL Boys 0 #697 4 13,390
IT 0 #702 13 4,183
Finland Girls 2026 #726 13 3,895
QA Boys 0 #741 3 18,093
BR Boys 0 #785 1 12,213
KW Boys 0 #804 3 18,755
Germany Girls 0 #809 30 4,949
NG Girls 0 #826 1 15,093
CL Girls 0 #842 10 14,098
PE Boys 0 #858 21 14,506
TN 0 #865 1 13,765
SA Girls 0 #874 62 25,931
NL Girls 0 #879 77 5,933
United States Girls 2024 #910 7 8,487
OM Boys 0 #911 8 17,948
Spain Boys 0 #921 10 5,610
EG Boys 0 #922 4 15,035
Spain Girls 0 #926 58 5,561
PE Girls 0 #928 16 14,861
NL Boys 0 #936 16 5,873
Germany Boys 0 #941 12 5,697
CO Boys 0 #978 4 15,656
BR Girls 0 #990 3 12,708
NG Boys 0 #998 4 16,906
EG Girls 0 #1,003 7 14,742
MX Boys 0 #1,029 5 16,355
IN Boys 0 #1,035 5 16,750
ZA Girls 0 #1,114 28 25,928
MA 0 #1,117 12 20,986
AE Boys 0 #1,135 9 22,615
CO Girls 0 #1,144 9 16,140
DZ 0 #1,164 13 20,130
ZA Boys 0 #1,166 13 25,619
TR 0 #1,252 3 19,440
MX Girls 0 #1,264 4 17,781
IT Girls 0 #1,266 181 9,415
IT Boys 0 #1,441 31 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,592 23 28,008

Ling is popular in 69 countries — most recent births per country:

United States
France
AE
AO
AR

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People also ask about Ling

Ling is predominantly a girl's name.
Ling is a one syllable name, pronounced líng (Pinyin: líng, tone 2; approximate English: "ling"; IPA: /liŋ/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include 玲 (líng), 灵 (líng), 玲玲 (Lingling) — reduplication pet form, Compound forms: Mei-ling, Xiu-ling and Linghua.
Across languages, Ling has these equivalents: Linh (Vietnamese; same character/meaning), Ling (Cantonese pronunciation/romanization), Rei (Japanese reading of 玲 sometimes used in female names).
Yes — Ling ranked #415 in France in 2014, and appears in official birth registries across 3 countries.
Ling ranks highest in France (#415 in 2014).
Ling's popularity is rising significantly. It moved from #933 in 2016 to #910 in 2024 in United States.
Yes — 1 notable people named Ling are in our database, including Bai Ling (Actor).