Linus is a Greek name of uncertain meaning, often linked to linon, "flax". In Greek myth Linus was a musician and the son of Apollo; in the Church, Linus was the second pope after Peter; and in America the name is forever tied to Linus van Pelt, the blanket-carrying philosopher of the Peanuts comic strip, and to chemist Linus Pauling. Linus peaked at number 1147 in 2017 and ranks number 1913 in 2025.