Leland is an English surname and place name that means "fallow land" or "meadow land", from the Old English laege, untilled, and land. Leland Stanford, railroad magnate and founder of Stanford University, is the name's best-known American bearer. Leland entered the US top 1000 in 2005, peaked at number 315 in 2007 and has slowly slipped since, ranking number 494 in 2025.