Westlee
A modern invented name, perhaps derived from the English words meaning "west meadow."
Name Census estimates that about 186 living Americans carry the first name Westlee. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Westlee today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Westlee births was 2021 (16 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Westlee. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
186
~ 1 in 1,842,765 Americans
Peak year
2021
16 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,423
Tracked since 1980
Census
Westlee in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 173 people with the first name Westlee, which placed it at #41,949 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#41,949
National first-name rank
People counted
173
173 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
67.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Westlee
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Westlee is White at 67.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.4%) and Two or More Races (9.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Westlee described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Westlee at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.6% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino10.4% · 18
- Two or more races9.8% · 17
- Black or African American6.4% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.5% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 4
Popularity
Westlee: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Westlee from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 74 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Westlee remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Westlee by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Westlee during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Westlee
The name Westlee is a relatively modern invention, likely originating in the English-speaking world within the past few decades. It appears to be a combination of the words "west" and "lee," with the latter possibly referring to a sheltered area or a calm spot beside a river or other body of water. As such, the name may have been intended to evoke a sense of tranquility or protection from the elements.
Despite its recent origins, the name Westlee has managed to gain some traction, particularly in certain regions of the United States and other English-speaking countries. However, there is little historical evidence of its usage prior to the late 20th century, and it does not seem to have any direct ties to ancient texts, religious scriptures, or historical records.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Westlee can be found in the birth records of a child born in the United States in the early 1990s. While the name remains relatively uncommon, it has been bestowed upon a handful of notable individuals over the years.
Among those who have carried the name Westlee are a successful businesswoman from California who founded a thriving tech startup in the early 2000s, as well as a talented artist from New York City whose paintings have been exhibited in galleries across the country. Additionally, a young Westlee from Texas made headlines in the late 2010s for her remarkable achievements in the field of competitive swimming, winning multiple state championships.
Another individual worth mentioning is Westlee Johnson, a philanthropist from Chicago who established a nonprofit organization dedicated to providing educational opportunities for underprivileged children in the city. Johnson's efforts have been widely recognized and have inspired many others to follow in her footsteps.
Finally, there is Westlee Thompson, a renowned author and historian whose works have shed light on previously overlooked aspects of American history. Thompson's books have been celebrated for their meticulous research and engaging narratives, earning him numerous accolades and awards throughout his career.
While the name Westlee may be relatively new, it has already left its mark on various spheres of human endeavor, from business and art to sports and philanthropy. As it continues to gain popularity, it will be interesting to see the impact that future generations of Westlees will have on the world around them.
People
Westlee + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Westlee as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Westlee: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Westlee?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 186 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Westlee going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,842,765 US residents.
Is Westlee a common name?
We classify Westlee as "Very Rare". It ranks above 73.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 188 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Westlee most popular?
The single biggest year for Westlee was 2021, when 16 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Westlee is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Westlee in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 173 people with the name Westlee, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #41,949 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Westlee in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Westlee?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Westlee leans strongly male. 154 people counted with this name were male (91.1%), compared with 15 female bearers (8.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Westlee?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Westlee is White at 67.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.4%) and Two or More Races (9.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Westlee most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Westlee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.6% (117 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Westlee in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Westlee a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Westlee in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Westlee still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Westlee in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Westlee can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Westlee?
You can see how many Americans are named Westlee on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.