Nell
#1,622 for girls in 2025, 128 births · Last seen for boys in 1977 at #5,123
Given to girls 99.6% of the time
- Peak · girls
- 1886 · 175 births
- Debut · girls
- 77 births
- In top 100 · girls
- neverof 146 years
- Total births · girls
- 27,612since 1880
Nell over time
Rank among girls' names. Nell has never cracked the top 100 here.
Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.
Show data table
| Year | girls | boys | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| rank | births | rank | births | |
| 2025 | #1,622 | 128 | — | |
| 2024 | #1,457 | 150 | — | |
| 2023 | #1,669 | 124 | — | |
| 2022 | #1,742 | 119 | — | |
| 2021 | #2,007 | 96 | — | |
| 2020 | #2,257 | 79 | — | |
| 2019 | #1,773 | 115 | — | |
| 2018 | #2,457 | 72 | — | |
| 2017 | #2,184 | 87 | — | |
| 2016 | #2,539 | 70 | — | |
| 2015 | #2,846 | 61 | — | |
| 2014 | #3,652 | 42 | — | |
| 2013 | #3,513 | 44 | — | |
| 2012 | #4,486 | 32 | — | |
| 2011 | #4,466 | 32 | — | |
| 2010 | #5,602 | 24 | — | |
| 2009 | #4,805 | 30 | — | |
| 2008 | #6,559 | 20 | — | |
| 2007 | #5,709 | 24 | — | |
| 2006 | #4,685 | 30 | — | |
| 2005 | #4,828 | 27 | — | |
| 2004 | #6,216 | 19 | — | |
| 2003 | #5,235 | 23 | — | |
| 2002 | #5,086 | 23 | — | |
| 2001 | #3,703 | 35 | — | |
| 2000 | #4,291 | 28 | — | |
| 1999 | #3,804 | 31 | — | |
| 1998 | #3,648 | 32 | — | |
| 1997 | #3,547 | 32 | — | |
| 1996 | #3,237 | 36 | — | |
| 1995 | #5,221 | 18 | — | |
| 1994 | #5,016 | 19 | — | |
| 1993 | #4,998 | 19 | — | |
| 1992 | #4,849 | 20 | — | |
| 1991 | #4,650 | 21 | — | |
| 1990 | #3,436 | 31 | — | |
| 1989 | #4,020 | 24 | — | |
| 1988 | #3,690 | 25 | — | |
| 1987 | #3,169 | 29 | — | |
| 1986 | #3,757 | 22 | — | |
| 1985 | #3,517 | 24 | — | |
| 1984 | #3,069 | 28 | — | |
| 1983 | #2,910 | 29 | — | |
| 1982 | #3,093 | 28 | — | |
| 1981 | #3,625 | 22 | — | |
| 1980 | #2,391 | 40 | — | |
| 1979 | #2,525 | 36 | — | |
| 1978 | #3,009 | 26 | — | |
| 1977 | #3,002 | 26 | #5,123 | 6 |
| 1976 | #2,728 | 28 | — | |
| 1975 | #2,357 | 34 | — | |
| 1974 | #1,961 | 43 | — | |
| 1973 | #1,939 | 42 | — | |
| 1972 | #2,222 | 34 | — | |
| 1971 | #2,247 | 35 | — | |
| 1970 | #2,203 | 36 | — | |
| 1969 | #2,023 | 38 | — | |
| 1968 | #2,126 | 32 | — | |
| 1967 | #2,212 | 29 | — | |
| 1966 | #2,147 | 30 | — | |
| 1965 | #1,887 | 37 | — | |
| 1964 | #1,635 | 49 | — | |
| 1963 | #1,547 | 53 | — | |
| 1962 | #1,757 | 42 | — | |
| 1961 | #1,360 | 67 | — | |
| 1960 | #1,181 | 85 | — | |
| 1959 | #1,208 | 78 | — | |
| 1958 | #1,129 | 88 | — | |
| 1957 | #1,173 | 81 | — | |
| 1956 | #988 | 106 | — | |
| 1955 | #1,020 | 97 | — | |
| 1954 | #916 | 110 | — | |
| 1953 | #782 | 137 | — | |
| 1952 | #800 | 128 | — | |
| 1951 | #741 | 140 | — | |
| 1950 | #681 | 157 | — | |
| 1949 | #745 | 132 | — | |
| 1948 | #613 | 182 | — | |
| 1947 | #624 | 181 | — | |
| 1946 | #568 | 197 | — | |
| 1945 | #537 | 184 | — | |
| 1944 | #544 | 176 | — | |
| 1943 | #496 | 225 | — | |
| 1942 | #459 | 261 | — | |
| 1941 | #440 | 240 | — | |
| 1940 | #393 | 296 | — | |
| 1939 | #409 | 271 | #3,480 | 5 |
| 1938 | #356 | 331 | — | |
| 1937 | #360 | 321 | — | |
| 1936 | #331 | 351 | — | |
| 1935 | #318 | 390 | #3,252 | 6 |
| 1934 | #302 | 427 | — | |
| 1933 | #286 | 443 | #2,542 | 9 |
| 1932 | #284 | 483 | — | |
| 1931 | #294 | 456 | — | |
| 1930 | #294 | 511 | — | |
| 1929 | #296 | 489 | — | |
| 1928 | #301 | 498 | #3,697 | 6 |
| 1927 | #282 | 562 | #3,780 | 6 |
| 1926 | #291 | 531 | — | |
| 1925 | #266 | 627 | — | |
| 1924 | #261 | 635 | #4,347 | 5 |
| 1923 | #257 | 624 | #4,239 | 5 |
| 1922 | #257 | 647 | #3,532 | 7 |
| 1921 | #238 | 760 | — | |
| 1920 | #256 | 661 | — | |
| 1919 | #248 | 666 | #3,115 | 8 |
| 1918 | #246 | 687 | #2,882 | 9 |
| 1917 | #220 | 766 | — | |
| 1916 | #226 | 722 | #3,177 | 7 |
| 1915 | #228 | 689 | — | |
| 1914 | #232 | 530 | — | |
| 1913 | #211 | 491 | #2,092 | 8 |
| 1912 | #218 | 422 | — | |
| 1911 | #220 | 322 | — | |
| 1910 | #202 | 318 | #1,421 | 6 |
| 1909 | #207 | 277 | — | |
| 1908 | #192 | 288 | — | |
| 1907 | #201 | 261 | — | |
| 1906 | #197 | 241 | — | |
| 1905 | #201 | 229 | — | |
| 1904 | #200 | 226 | — | |
| 1903 | #203 | 206 | — | |
| 1902 | #185 | 247 | — | |
| 1901 | #199 | 205 | — | |
| 1900 | #198 | 256 | #1,310 | 5 |
| 1899 | #199 | 192 | — | |
| 1898 | #186 | 246 | — | |
| 1897 | #189 | 209 | — | |
| 1896 | #187 | 215 | — | |
| 1895 | #170 | 247 | — | |
| 1894 | #181 | 215 | — | |
| 1893 | #188 | 187 | — | |
| 1892 | #171 | 216 | — | |
| 1891 | #175 | 190 | — | |
| 1890 | #160 | 221 | — | |
| 1889 | #156 | 194 | — | |
| 1888 | #159 | 188 | — | |
| 1887 | #168 | 146 | — | |
| 1886 | #144 | 175 | — | |
| 1885 | #151 | 151 | — | |
| 1884 | #162 | 120 | — | |
| 1883 | #153 | 116 | — | |
| 1882 | #159 | 103 | — | |
| 1881 | #175 | 75 | — | |
| 1880 | #169 | 77 | — | |
In the first year the SSA published name data, Nell was already there! It came in at #169, and was given to 77 baby girls.
Quietest stretch: 1991–1995, when fewer than 22 girls a year got the name.
See more about Nell
- 165 spots since 2024 (#1,457 → #1,622)
- 635 spots since 2020 (#2,257 → #1,622)
- 1,224 spots since 2015 (#2,846 → #1,622)
- Biggest jump: 64 spots in 1950 (#745 → #681)
- Biggest drop: 185 spots in 1957 (#988 → #1,173)
- Debuted 1880
- Peaked 1886 at #144 (175 births)
- Births halved by 1957, 71 yrs later
- Top 10: never
- Top 100: never
- Top 1,000: 76 yrs · run 1880–1954
- Highest: 1 in 826 girls born in 1886 were named Nell (0.12%)
- Latest: 1 in 12,557 girls born in 2025 (0.01%)
- 21.9% of all girls named Nell (6,034) were born in this decade
Show by decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank | Avg rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 1,345 | #144 (1886) | #160 |
| 1890s | 2,138 | #160 (1890) | #181 |
| 1900s | 2,436 | #185 (1902) | #198 |
| 1910s | 5,613 | #202 (1910) | #225 |
| 1920s | 6,034 | #238 (1921) | #271 |
| 1930s | 3,984 | #284 (1932) | #323 |
| 1940s | 2,074 | #393 (1940) | #542 |
| 1950s | 1,122 | #681 (1950) | #944 |
| 1960s | 462 | #1,181 (1960) | #1,788 |
| 1970s | 340 | #1,939 (1973) | #2,419 |
| 1980s | 271 | #2,391 (1980) | #3,324 |
| 1990s | 259 | #3,237 (1996) | #4,241 |
| 2000s | 259 | #3,703 (2001) | #5,112 |
| 2010s | 579 | #1,773 (2019) | #3,352 |
| 2020s | 696 | #1,457 (2024) | #1,792 |
All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 girls in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.
Nell in 1923
Top girls' names in 1923
Top boys' names in 1923
More about 1923
girls
1,206,366 girls got a published name in 1923; 1 in 1,933 of them was named Nell, which outranked 95.5% of the 5,739 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 23.4% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).
Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.
boys
1,096,102 boys got a published name in 1923; 1 in 219,220 of them was named Nell, which outranked 13.6% of the 4,904 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 32.3% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).
Tied with 665 names at #4,239; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.
Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.