Link is a short form of Lincoln, an English place name usually explained as "lake colony" or "settlement by the pool", and is also the English word for a connection. Many parents know it as the name of the hero of Nintendo's The Legend of Zelda games, which have appeared since 1986. Link rose from almost no use in 2000 to a peak of number 1075 in 2022 and ranks number 1579 among US boys' names in 2025.