Lei Surname

152nd
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 3,739,001 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
China
Highest density in:
Macau

Lei Surname User-submission:

Lei is written in Chinese as 雷, which means 'thunder'. Though Lei is similar to and may be mispronounced as other Chinese surnames such as Lee or Li, they have different meanings, pronunciations, and characters.

Lei Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
China3,369,7291:40676
Myanmar297,6681:17436
Macau27,4441:222
Taiwan10,0271:2,33895
United States7,4641:48,5615,885
Cambodia6,1331:2,525505
Thailand6,0081:11,757717
Hong Kong4,1751:1,757148
Singapore2,6151:2,106213
Canada1,4651:25,1513,388
Australia7391:36,5304,792
Malaysia5751:51,2943,998
Italy3671:166,63925,369
Netherlands3131:53,9539,259
Papua New Guinea3031:26,9103,022
Indonesia2991:442,30536,893
France2831:234,70936,380
Portugal2641:39,4632,350
England2611:213,47918,261
Brazil2441:877,35431,604
Philippines2061:491,44858,185
Spain1961:238,53115,520
Denmark1511:37,3823,890
Germany1481:543,95645,184
Switzerland1351:60,8367,569
New Zealand1281:35,3786,076
Suriname1151:4,8051,070
Ivory Coast1051:219,7269,142
Romania951:211,34620,786
French Polynesia861:3,265709
Hungary781:125,85011,707
Vietnam781:1,187,7701,968
Japan691:1,852,81626,842
Ukraine671:679,44371,859
Kenya641:721,56130,456
Venezuela621:487,1639,407
Chile491:359,5209,978
Peru491:648,65615,868
Russia441:3,275,524171,933
Sweden431:228,99415,912
Ecuador421:378,7119,777
Lesotho381:53,4888,156
Solomon Islands381:15,2642,918
Brunei371:11,3171,397
DR Congo271:2,736,280122,818
Mexico271:4,597,26727,985
Belize261:13,6721,505
Iran251:3,071,30192,215
South Africa251:2,167,10894,352
India241:31,961,058386,265
Pakistan231:7,767,12541,967
Qatar221:107,18211,536
Guam211:7,6251,143
Argentina201:2,137,171104,027
Uganda191:2,054,69965,771
Nigeria181:9,841,264197,192
Costa Rica161:298,7543,169
Scotland161:334,61415,044
Finland151:366,44725,366
Ireland141:336,35312,021
Paraguay141:516,9106,745
American Samoa111:5,0691,123
Norway111:467,48139,375
Sudan91:4,167,7995,799
Belarus81:1,187,63277,603
Kazakhstan81:2,210,31295,036
United Arab Emirates81:1,145,28440,289
Wales71:442,07621,198
Northern Ireland61:307,50612,899
Belgium61:1,916,107103,447
Algeria51:7,726,31057,379
Greece51:2,215,95891,893
Cameroon41:5,192,267135,173
Congo41:1,247,27420,238
East Timor41:303,982255
South Korea41:12,810,0642,073
South Sudan41:2,853,7691,758
Wallis and Futuna41:3,40266
Yemen41:6,606,32425,896
Austria31:2,838,47893,604
Lithuania21:1,517,29435,813
Panama21:1,956,12915,285
Poland21:19,004,374199,659
Tanzania21:26,470,806111,653
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
Angola11:26,989,21411,853
Armenia11:2,930,18022,770
Bahamas11:391,7512,737
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Croatia11:4,228,60499,289
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Estonia11:1,321,80440,178
Ghana11:27,020,69223,742
Honduras11:8,816,4429,272
Israel11:8,557,634182,558
Kuwait11:3,800,69427,187
Latvia11:2,050,04660,295
Maldives11:404,1727,269
Mauritius11:1,293,41716,552
Morocco11:34,476,099111,471
Mozambique11:27,261,5697,432
Oman11:3,687,97114,390
Saint Martin11:35,156229
Samoa11:193,8081,089
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
Senegal11:14,579,34211,705
Serbia11:7,144,94838,459
Togo11:7,247,76812,049
Uruguay11:3,431,75838,295
Uzbekistan11:30,929,14267,786
Zambia11:15,849,92253,989
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England51:4,875,074116,529
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States471:1,068,48362,061

The alternate forms: Leį (1), Léi (1), Leí (1) & Leï (1) are calculated separately.

Lei (7,902,269) may also be a first name.

Lei Surname Meaning

User-submitted Reference

Lei is written in Chinese as 雷, which means 'thunder'. Though Lei is similar to and may be mispronounced as other Chinese surnames such as Lee or Li, they have different meanings, pronunciations, and characters.

- darkaberdeen

The Chinese surname, Lee/Li, means 'plum' or 'plum tree' and share the same character. The Korean and Vietnamese variations -- Yi, Rhee, and Ri -- may have Chinese origin.

- loucust

Lei Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Lei Come From? nationality or country of origin

Lei (Arabic: ليات, Bengali: লেই, Hindi: लॆी, Oriya: େଲଇ, Russian: Леи) is found most in China. It can also be rendered as a variant: Leį, Léi, Leí or Leï. For other possible spellings of this surname click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Lei? popularity and diffusion

The last name Lei is the 152nd most common family name on earth, held by around 1 in 1,949 people. This last name occurs mostly in Asia, where 100 percent of Lei are found; 91 percent are found in East Asia and 91 percent are found in Sino-East Asia. It is also the 36th most frequently used first name globally, held by 7,902,269 people.

It is most frequently occurring in China, where it is carried by 3,369,729 people, or 1 in 406. Other than China it occurs in 110 countries. It is also found in Myanmar, where 8 percent reside and Macau, where 1 percent reside.

Lei Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The occurrence of Lei has changed through the years. In The United States the number of people who held the Lei surname rose 15,881 percent between 1880 and 2014 and in England it rose 5,220 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Lei Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those bearing the last name is primarily Christian (100%) in Kenya.

In The United States those holding the Lei surname are 22.94% more likely to be registered with the Democratic Party than The US average, with 76.17% registered to vote for the party.

The amount Lei earn in different countries varies greatly. In Italy they earn 166.14% more than the national average, earning €79,923 per year; in Norway they earn 119.97% more than the national average, earning 761,261 kr per year; in Peru they earn 46.08% more than the national average, earning S/. 28,318 per year; in South Africa they earn 36.64% more than the national average, earning R 324,720 per year; in United States they earn 0.4% more than the national average, earning $43,322 USD per year and in Canada they earn 6.25% more than the national average, earning $52,790 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Leį891/
Léi891/
Leí891/
Leï891/
Leis8614,460/
Leid861,469/
Leiß861,367/
Leit86649/
Leji86550/
Leip86334/
Leih86321/
Leiz86289/
Leyi86284/
Hlei86205/
Leij86204/
Leie86183/
Leia86115/
Leui8692/
Leiu8660/
Leio8644/
Leii8621/
Leiš8614/
Leić866/
Leiy864/
Lhei862/
Llei862/
Leiś861/
Li80104,892,114/
Le807,542,572/
Leist756,260/
Leiss752,225/
Leich751,006/
Leggi75566/
Leijs75560/
Leiyo75338/
Leipp75286/
Leiee75233/
Leihy75121/
Leies7595/
Leihe7594/
Leius7588/
Leihs7585/
Leish7581/
Leijh7550/
Leidt7547/
Leitt7546/
Leipf7543/
Leids7534/
Leiau7533/
Hleis7525/
Leeji7521/
Lahei7520/
Leits7518/
Leije7518/
Leijd7517/
Lehiy7516/
Leuii7515/
Lieji7513/
Leyie7512/
Leihu7510/
Legie7510/
Leias758/
Leicz758/
Leiah757/
Leiha756/
Lejie755/
Leios755/
Lheis755/
Lehio755/
Lehia754/
Leiyh754/
Leyid754/
Leyio754/
Lei'i754/
Leiot753/
Leeia753/
Leiho753/
Leeie753/
Leeii752/
Leidd752/
Ålhei752/
Leuhi752/
Leyis752/
Leeiy752/
Lejio752/
Leiis752/
Leiuh752/
Leiph751/
Leuiy751/
Leiux751/
Leidh751/
Leieh751/
Leihi751/
Leiet751/
Leiez751/
Leiht751/
Leiij751/
Leitp751/
L'Lei751/
Leyhi751/
Leyih751/
Leyii751/
Leyit751/
Lleis751/
Hleih751/
Leidz750/
Leizz750/
Lai673,581,809/
Lee672,280,266/
Let67158,562/
Lui6799,152/
Lis6791,537/
Lie6750,006/
Lea6747,342/
Loi6738,016/
Lia6735,092/
Ley6727,224/
Leu6724,043/
Leitch6715,697/
Lye6713,181/
Lio6711,281/
Loe6711,155/
Les6710,374/
Leicht6710,110/
Lue678,902/
Leh678,408/
Liz677,308/
Lae676,071/
Leggio674,494/
Lit673,489/
Lip673,340/
Ler673,129/
Led672,153/
Lid671,974/
Lep671,560/
Lii671,162/
Lih671,158/
Lle671,066/
Lli671,018/
Liß67919/
Liy67604/
Hle67389/
Laheij67374/
Lez67308/
Lej67274/
Leß67160/
Løe67139/
Leş67106/
Leș67101/
Lhi6791/
Lyi6786/
Leiggi6784/
Leiths6753/
Leț6744/
Lij6743/
Leiszt6737/
Hli6730/
Lge6729/
Uanlei6725/
Hleiss6723/
Leihed6719/
Leś6717/
Leţ6714/
Lhe6713/
Lje6712/
Leeies6711/
Åle6710/
Leijdt678/
Leidås677/
Leitås677/
Leč677/
Leehie676/
Lée675/
Leggia674/
Lleiss674/
Llejis674/
Lleyii673/
Leihøj673/
Leisht672/
Lgi672/
Loehie671/
Lleihi671/
Lejith671/
Leichh671/
Leihee671/
Laahei671/
Liṓ671/
Lêe671/
Lại671/
Lợi671/
Llegie671/
Liù671/
Liǔ671/
Leitth671/
Leejid671/
L'E671/
Leň671/
Liejie671/
Hleijh671/
Hleeji671/
Leidtz670/
Lehgih670/
Leitts670/
Leieet670/
Leiach670/
Leittz670/
Leitsh670/

Lei Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Lei in the Bengali language
লেইle'i-
Lei in the Oriya language
େଲଇela'i75
େଳଇela'i25
Lei in the Hindi language
लॆीlei50
लेईle'i50
Lei in the Russian language
Леиlei-
Lei in the Arabic language
لياتlyat-
ليىlyy-

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Lei
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis