Meaning: Its source is Loukas, a Greek name meaning "One from Lucania."

Languages: This boy's name is used in English.

Compound Forms: Jean-Luc

Non-English Forms: Luc, Luca, Loek and Loïc

Source Forms: Loukas

Popularity: The name Luke ranked 52nd in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of 2000-2003 Social Security Administration statistics and 320th in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

This name was popular earlier in the 20th century, then fell off in usage, but has begun making a comeback in recent years.

Narrative: Just as Germany is the English name for the country known to its own people as Deutschland, the ancient Greeks had names for various regions of the world, including those inhabited by non-Greeks. Lucania was their name for the region of Italy now known as Basilicata. Loukas was a name given to individuals from that area.

Over time Loukas developed into a number of forms commonly used throughout the ancient world. (In ancient times, Greek was the language of business, much as English is today.) They were used without respect to the home country of the person so called.

Continued use of this name (in various forms) can be attributed to the author of the third gospel in the Christian scriptures. Depending on the translation of the Bible, he is known as Luke, Lucas or Lucius.