Nathaniel

Last seen for girls in 2022 at #13,592 · #140 for boys in 2025, 2,565 births
Given to boys 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
1998 · 6,427 births
Debut · boys
60 births
In top 100 · boys
38 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
287,103
since 1880

Nathaniel over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100rank188019001920194019601980200020201979peak #60, 1998boys
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025—#1402,565
2024—#1442,520
2023—#1432,533
2022#13,5926#1382,706
2021—#1332,834
2020#13,4536#1252,930
2019—#1223,097
2018—#1163,391
2017—#1123,541
2016#14,3316#1033,887
2015—#964,234
2014—#944,317
2013#14,5826#914,538
2012—#844,795
2011#8,61413#844,980
2010#14,9596#815,110
2009#11,4599#755,426
2008#12,5798#775,858
2007#11,6309#826,067
2006#12,4208#696,627
2005#13,0107#676,689
2004#3,98935#686,675
2003#15,7845#636,666
2002#6,69816#626,813
2001#6,32217#616,646
2000#7,15814#616,797
1999#7,71612#626,467
1998#9,2609#606,427
1997#12,0706#655,775
1996#10,5677#695,420
1995#6,64113#735,203
1994#8,12210#785,029
1993#8,7199#754,854
1992#6,65213#794,687
1991#9,3368#844,367
1990#5,28617#864,348
1989#5,54515#844,121
1988#4,01522#814,054
1987#3,03131#784,050
1986#2,62037#784,032
1985#3,41925#774,004
1984#3,23326#803,600
1983#2,85330#793,641
1982#2,70434#743,939
1981#3,25326#803,719
1980#3,06928#863,492
1979#3,14726#953,040
1978#3,51221#942,925
1977#3,36622#1072,500
1976#6,6118#1142,209
1975#2,56530#1311,957
1974#4,72012#1531,609
1973#3,12221#1691,391
1972#4,52312#1921,208
1971#3,94315#2001,210
1970#4,76111#2181,136
1969#3,31817#231991
1968#4,22211#235921
1967#4,30010#226976
1966#3,55813#235903
1965#3,54913#2231,071
1964#5,0088#2361,023
1963#5,8916#2331,026
1962#4,8658#2341,085
1961#4,23910#2441,049
1960#4,7738#2391,146
1959#3,82711#2351,159
1958#3,08515#2351,102
1957#2,82317#2131,262
1956#3,69611#2051,309
1955#3,22513#1951,334
1954#3,49011#2031,228
1953#3,26912#1931,267
1952#3,04013#1881,258
1951#3,10612#1871,247
1950#2,90913#1821,223
1949#3,8928#1791,192
1948#3,13711#1801,159
1947#4,7646#1871,100
1946#3,21710#186977
1945—#181853
1944#3,1399#183864
1943#4,1966#191839
1942#4,6225#188843
1941#4,4205#182829
1940#2,57211#176833
1939#4,2505#183770
1938—#186749
1937#4,2555#186703
1936#3,1038#179738
1935#3,4317#180747
1934#3,1598#174782
1933#3,1098#178728
1932#3,2748#176781
1931#4,3315#199659
1930#3,6587#185754
1929#3,6827#184760
1928#2,62312#193728
1927#3,05310#187769
1926#4,3066#176821
1925#3,11610#178810
1924#3,6658#179800
1923—#193721
1922—#175800
1921—#187748
1920—#166837
1919#3,8177#174748
1918—#193661
1917#4,0836#189640
1916—#193590
1915#4,2745#197554
1914—#185470
1913—#201337
1912—#163356
1911—#161207
1910—#139232
1909—#172143
1908—#159150
1907—#174124
1906—#177101
1905—#167117
1904—#174105
1903—#165105
1902—#18988
1901—#16392
1900—#176118
1899—#18972
1898—#17590
1897—#27243
1896—#20673
1895—#19972
1894—#19277
1893—#22458
1892—#19678
1891—#23746
1890—#17875
1889—#23348
1888—#22163
1887—#20357
1886—#22059
1885—#22054
1884—#22156
1883—#22149
1882—#21757
1881—#22048
1880—#20060
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Nathaniel was already there! It came in at #200, and was given to 60 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1897, when fewer than 44 boys a year got the name.

Where Nathaniel is popular in 1979

  • Rank in state
  • Top 10
  • 11–50
  • 51–100
  • 101–500
  • 501+
  • Not published
Alaska: #91 for boys · 9 births · 1 in 393 boysAKMaine: #63 for boys · 26 births · 1 in 275 boysMEVermont: #69 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 307 boysVTNew Hampshire: #76 for boys · 15 births · 1 in 379 boysNHWashington: #91 for boys · 61 births · 1 in 486 boysWAIdaho: #85 for boys · 22 births · 1 in 383 boysIDMontana: #72 for boys · 20 births · 1 in 290 boysMTNorth Dakota: #106 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 552 boysNDMinnesota: #76 for boys · 78 births · 1 in 399 boysMNIllinois: #89 for boys · 172 births · 1 in 487 boysILWisconsin: #76 for boys · 78 births · 1 in 443 boysWIMichigan: #85 for boys · 136 births · 1 in 493 boysMINew York: #115 for boys · 144 births · 1 in 771 boysNYMassachusetts: #80 for boys · 70 births · 1 in 484 boysMARhode Island: #86 for boys · 10 births · 1 in 530 boysRIOregon: #70 for boys · 57 births · 1 in 340 boysORNevada: #62 for boys · 18 births · 1 in 275 boysNVWyoming: #131 for boys · 5 births · 1 in 713 boysWYSouth Dakota: #84 for boys · 14 births · 1 in 380 boysSDIowa: #79 for boys · 58 births · 1 in 382 boysIAIndiana: #58 for boys · 143 births · 1 in 287 boysINOhio: #84 for boys · 167 births · 1 in 481 boysOHPennsylvania: #96 for boys · 121 births · 1 in 629 boysPANew Jersey: #156 for boys · 39 births · 1 in 1,088 boysNJConnecticut: #82 for boys · 35 births · 1 in 494 boysCTCalifornia: #116 for boys · 319 births · 1 in 563 boysCAUtah: #116 for boys · 29 births · 1 in 656 boysUTColorado: #67 for boys · 66 births · 1 in 330 boysCONebraska: #86 for boys · 24 births · 1 in 498 boysNEMissouri: #83 for boys · 81 births · 1 in 453 boysMOKentucky: #104 for boys · 48 births · 1 in 587 boysKYWest Virginia: #103 for boys · 22 births · 1 in 632 boysWVVirginia: #73 for boys · 82 births · 1 in 406 boysVAMaryland: #87 for boys · 46 births · 1 in 493 boysMDDelaware: #81 for boys · 9 births · 1 in 413 boysDEArizona: #85 for boys · 50 births · 1 in 419 boysAZNew Mexico: #74 for boys · 31 births · 1 in 331 boysNMKansas: #98 for boys · 31 births · 1 in 543 boysKSArkansas: #100 for boys · 32 births · 1 in 498 boysARTennessee: #128 for boys · 43 births · 1 in 764 boysTNNorth Carolina: #100 for boys · 65 births · 1 in 578 boysNCSouth Carolina: #89 for boys · 45 births · 1 in 468 boysSCDistrict of Columbia: #55 for boys · 32 births · 1 in 247 boysDCOklahoma: #115 for boys · 36 births · 1 in 593 boysOKLouisiana: #169 for boys · 42 births · 1 in 831 boysLAMississippi: #128 for boys · 31 births · 1 in 610 boysMSAlabama: #153 for boys · 34 births · 1 in 794 boysALGeorgia: #97 for boys · 80 births · 1 in 491 boysGAHawaii: #119 for boys · 12 births · 1 in 537 boysHITexas: #169 for boys · 142 births · 1 in 868 boysTXFlorida: #106 for boys · 90 births · 1 in 608 boysFL

Hover or tap a state for its numbers.

Top states · boys
  1. District of Columbia#55 · 1 in 247
  2. Indiana#58 · 1 in 287
  3. Nevada#62 · 1 in 275
  4. Maine#63 · 1 in 275
  5. Colorado#67 · 1 in 330

Best ever in a state: #26 in Alaska, 2000.

Show every state
StateRankBirthsShare
District of Columbia#55321 in 247
Indiana#581431 in 287
Nevada#62181 in 275
Maine#63261 in 275
Colorado#67661 in 330
Vermont#69101 in 307
Oregon#70571 in 340
Montana#72201 in 290
Virginia#73821 in 406
New Mexico#74311 in 331
Minnesota#76781 in 399
New Hampshire#76151 in 379
Wisconsin#76781 in 443
Iowa#79581 in 382
Massachusetts#80701 in 484
Delaware#8191 in 413
Connecticut#82351 in 494
Missouri#83811 in 453
Ohio#841671 in 481
South Dakota#84141 in 380
Arizona#85501 in 419
Idaho#85221 in 383
Michigan#851361 in 493
Nebraska#86241 in 498
Rhode Island#86101 in 530
Maryland#87461 in 493
Illinois#891721 in 487
South Carolina#89451 in 468
Alaska#9191 in 393
Washington#91611 in 486
Pennsylvania#961211 in 629
Georgia#97801 in 491
Kansas#98311 in 543
Arkansas#100321 in 498
North Carolina#100651 in 578
West Virginia#103221 in 632
Kentucky#104481 in 587
Florida#106901 in 608
North Dakota#106101 in 552
New York#1151441 in 771
Oklahoma#115361 in 593
California#1163191 in 563
Utah#116291 in 656
Hawaii#119121 in 537
Mississippi#128311 in 610
Tennessee#128431 in 764
Wyoming#13151 in 713
Alabama#153341 in 794
New Jersey#156391 in 1,088
Louisiana#169421 in 831
Texas#1691421 in 868

Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.

See more about Nathaniel
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 4 spots since 2024 (#144 → #140)
  • 15 spots since 2020 (#125 → #140)
  • 44 spots since 2015 (#96 → #140)
  • Biggest jump: 97 spots in 1898 (#272 → #175)
  • Biggest drop: 66 spots in 1897 (#206 → #272)
Rise & fade · boys
118 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1998 at #60 (6,427 births)
  • Births halved by 2019, 21 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 38 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 38 yrs · run 1978–2015
  • Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 285
  • Highest: 1 in 285 boys born in 2002 were named Nathaniel (0.35%)
  • Latest: 1 in 666 boys born in 2025 (0.15%)
  • Its best rank, #60 in 1998, was only 1 in 297 (0.34%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 2000s
  • 22.4% of all boys named Nathaniel (64,264) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s551#200 (1880)#218
1890s684#175 (1898)#207
1900s1,143#159 (1908)#172
1910s4,795#139 (1910)#180
1920s7,794#166 (1920)#182
1930s7,411#174 (1934)#183
1940s9,489#176 (1940)#183
1950s12,389#182 (1950)#204
1960s10,191#223 (1965)#234
1970s19,185#94 (1978)#147
1980s38,652#74 (1982)#80
1990s52,577#60 (1998)#73
2000s64,264#61 (2000)#69
2010s41,890#81 (2010)#98
2020s16,088#125 (2020)#137

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Nathaniel in 1979

girls
#3,147
26 births · 1 in 61,741 girls
boys
#95
3,040 births · 1 in 566 boys

Top girls' names in 1979

  1. #1Jennifer56,712
  2. #2Melissa34,050
  3. #3Amanda31,924
  4. #4Jessica27,780
  5. #5Amy21,609
  6. #6Sarah21,015
  7. #7Heather20,834
  8. #8Angela20,256
  9. #9Nicole19,510
  10. #10Michelle19,266
  11. #3,147Nathaniel26

Top boys' names in 1979

  1. #1Michael67,713
  2. #2Christopher50,659
  3. #3Jason50,369
  4. #4David42,053
  5. #5James39,351
  6. #6Matthew35,621
  7. #7John35,410
  8. #8Robert34,015
  9. #9Joshua31,120
  10. #10Brian28,659
  11. #95Nathaniel3,040
More about 1979

girls

1,605,268 girls got a published name in 1979; 1 in 61,741 of them was named Nathaniel, which outranked 73.7% of the 11,972 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 17.0% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Nathaniel
  1. #3,078Tyronza27
  2. #3,078Vernetta27
  3. #3,078Vilma27
  4. #3,147Nathaniel26
  5. #3,147Adelaide26
  6. #3,147Adelia26
  7. #3,147Andera26
  8. #3,236Adrain25
  9. #3,236Adrea25
  10. #3,236Alanda25

Tied with 88 names at #3,147; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1978
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,593Breanne#2,125 → #532
  2. ↑ 1,527Loni#2,516 → #989
  3. ↑ 1,287Renata#2,012 → #725
  4. ↑ 985Ashanti#1,862 → #877
  5. ↑ 896Nicolette#1,581 → #685
Fallers
  1. ↓ 392Christel#762 → #1,154
  2. ↓ 312Kenisha#557 → #869
  3. ↓ 297Ariane#887 → #1,184
  4. ↓ 285Imelda#947 → #1,232
  5. ↓ 252Farrah#539 → #791

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

boys

1,721,536 boys got a published name in 1979; 1 in 566 of them was named Nathaniel, which outranked 98.7% of the 7,071 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 24.1% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Nathaniel
  1. #92Russell3,132
  2. #93Casey3,082
  3. #94Alexander3,058
  4. #95Nathaniel3,040
  5. #95Terry3,040
  6. #97Billy2,998
  7. #98Brett2,997
  8. #99Troy2,964

Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1978
Risers
  1. ↑ 1,228Tyrel#2,134 → #906
  2. ↑ 471Jace#1,186 → #715
  3. ↑ 387Chaz#1,371 → #984
  4. ↑ 311Tyrell#1,051 → #740
  5. ↑ 308Frederic#1,203 → #895
Fallers
  1. ↓ 1,230Dequan#927 → #2,157
  2. ↓ 641Rahsaan#869 → #1,510
  3. ↓ 446Chip#989 → #1,435
  4. ↓ 308Rashaun#996 → #1,304
  5. ↓ 307Kenya#749 → #1,056

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1979 →