Linnea is a Swedish name taken from the twinflower, Linnaea borealis, which was named after the 18th-century botanist Carl Linnaeus, so its meaning is simply "twinflower". The small pink woodland flower was Linnaeus's favorite, and the name is a classic in Sweden and Norway. In the United States Linnea remains a rare choice with Scandinavian roots; it has never entered the top 1000 and ranks 1449 in 2025, close to its best rank of 1346 in 2015.