Leslie comes from a Scottish surname and place name in Aberdeenshire, usually explained as "garden of hollies" or "gray fortress", from Gaelic words. It was a boys' name until the 20th century, when actress Leslie Caron and others helped make it a girls' favorite in the United States. Leslie ranked number 90 in 2000, peaked at number 84 in 2001 and has drifted steadily downward since, ranking number 712 in 2025.