Lucien is the French form of the Roman name Lucianus, a derivative of Lucius, which comes from the Latin lux and means "light". It has been a standard name in France since the 19th century and strikes American ears as a more polished cousin of Lucas and Luca. Lucien hovered around number 1100 for a decade, entered the top 1000 in 2023 and has risen to number 899 in 2025, its highest rank so far.