Nellie

#533 for girls in 2025, 567 births · Last seen for boys in 1947 at #3,370
Given to girls 99.6% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · girls
1881 · 1,096 births
Debut · girls
995 births
In top 100 · girls
46 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · girls
152,691
since 1880

Nellie over time

girls

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

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201889peak #14, 1881girls
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#533567—
2024#521592—
2023#615486—
2022#663446—
2021#743384—
2020#840325—
2019#861311—
2018#1,065239—
2017#1,224196—
2016#1,217202—
2015#1,239197—
2014#1,301183—
2013#1,432158—
2012#1,566139—
2011#1,758116—
2010#1,751118—
2009#1,742125—
2008#1,880113—
2007#1,792119—
2006#2,00399—
2005#2,18084—
2004#1,92597—
2003#2,03388—
2002#1,89793—
2001#1,99585—
2000#2,27768—
1999#1,85785—
1998#1,80186—
1997#1,91476—
1996#1,89876—
1995#1,68487—
1994#1,86276—
1993#1,96771—
1992#1,77482—
1991#1,76681—
1990#1,347118—
1989#1,47998—
1988#1,42797—
1987#1,67872—
1986#1,35196—
1985#1,269106—
1984#1,170114—
1983#1,071129—
1982#1,107127—
1981#1,055135—
1980#1,034138—
1979#950154—
1978#969143—
1977#1,004134—
1976#971131—
1975#878151—
1974#841156—
1973#910136—
1972#855151—
1971#836164—
1970#848159—
1969#859147—
1968#779165—
1967#695197—
1966#662213—
1965#691202—
1964#624262—
1963#627259—
1962#615266—
1961#535335—
1960#507363—
1959#498384—
1958#489382—
1957#455432—
1956#410487—
1955#386521—
1954#372550—
1953#336606—
1952#321637—
1951#322604—
1950#283757—
1949#281743—
1948#250891—
1947#250876#3,3706
1946#240885—
1945#210933#3,3385
1944#1991,011—
1943#1971,077—
1942#1831,207#2,26811
1941#1671,284#2,6568
1940#1611,300#2,8717
1939#1571,373#2,28810
1938#1521,454#1,97613
1937#1401,590#2,33210
1936#1351,665#2,4529
1935#1311,738#1,83715
1934#1261,837#1,93214
1933#1201,867#1,99713
1932#1231,979#1,77717
1931#1191,987#1,84316
1930#1132,213#1,96415
1929#1132,198#1,93316
1928#1112,346#2,16214
1927#1052,678#2,52311
1926#1022,722#1,84618
1925#982,937#2,75510
1924#923,075#1,83919
1923#883,184#3,1758
1922#833,274#3,2528
1921#803,513#2,63211
1920#763,762#2,33613
1919#693,726#2,38512
1918#654,048#2,8829
1917#643,808#2,18813
1916#613,862#2,7309
1915#633,679#2,31011
1914#612,952#2,6517
1913#582,645#2,4966
1912#592,365#1,61910
1911#541,866#1,5376
1910#511,928#1,4216
1909#511,768—
1908#491,757#1,1137
1907#501,671#1,0947
1906#491,596#1,0047
1905#481,626#1,0027
1904#441,560—
1903#451,491—
1902#411,566#1,0136
1901#411,454#7279
1900#431,850#74312
1899#411,510#9286
1898#361,810#1,0026
1897#371,693#9426
1896#341,696#9826
1895#291,833#7389
1894#301,767#63111
1893#271,770#45916
1892#301,738#7489
1891#251,647#6359
1890#201,821#6679
1889#191,752#7228
1888#211,736#7558
1887#191,457#58310
1886#171,492#9595
1885#161,432#8366
1884#171,417#6639
1883#171,246—
1882#191,138#8376
1881#141,096#7067
1880#18995#8096
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Nellie was already there! It came in at #18, and was given to 995 baby girls.


Quietest stretch: 1991–2006, when fewer than 100 girls a year got the name.

Where Nellie is popular in 1889

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Nellie
Momentum · girls
Rising
  • 12 spots since 2024 (#521 → #533)
  • 307 spots since 2020 (#840 → #533)
  • 706 spots since 2015 (#1,239 → #533)
  • Biggest jump: 204 spots in 2019 (#1,065 → #861)
  • Biggest drop: 93 spots in 1976 (#878 → #971)
Rise & fade · girls
1 yr to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 1881 at #14 (1,096 births)
  • Births halved by 1955, 74 yrs later
Top of the charts · girls
Top 100 for 46 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 46 yrs · run 1880–1925
  • Top 1,000: 106 yrs · run 1880–1976
Share of babies · girls
1 in 84
  • Highest: 1 in 84 girls born in 1881 were named Nellie (1.2%)
  • Latest: 1 in 2,835 girls born in 2025 (0.04%)
Era · girls
The 1910s
  • 20.2% of all girls named Nellie (30,879) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s13,761#14 (1881)#18
1890s17,285#20 (1890)#31
1900s16,339#41 (1902)#46
1910s30,879#51 (1910)#61
1920s29,689#76 (1920)#95
1930s17,703#113 (1930)#132
1940s10,207#161 (1940)#214
1950s5,360#283 (1950)#387
1960s2,409#507 (1960)#659
1970s1,479#836 (1971)#906
1980s1,112#1,034 (1980)#1,264
1990s838#1,347 (1990)#1,787
2000s971#1,742 (2009)#1,972
2010s1,859#861 (2019)#1,341
2020s2,800#521 (2024)#653

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.

Nellie in 1889

girls
#19
1,752 births · 1 in 102 girls
boys
#722
8 births · 1 in 13,823 boys

Top girls' names in 1889

  1. #1Mary11,648
  2. #2Anna5,062
  3. #3Elizabeth3,058
  4. #4Margaret2,917
  5. #5Emma2,884
  6. #6Minnie2,624
  7. #7Florence2,465
  8. #8Ethel2,463
  9. #9Bessie2,343
  10. #10Clara2,319
  11. #19Nellie1,752

Top boys' names in 1889

  1. #1John8,548
  2. #2William7,772
  3. #3James5,020
  4. #4George4,430
  5. #5Charles4,199
  6. #6Frank2,975
  7. #7Joseph2,729
  8. #8Harry2,559
  9. #9Robert2,513
  10. #10Edward2,299
  11. #722Nellie8
More about 1889

girls

178,366 girls got a published name in 1889; 1 in 102 of them was named Nellie, which outranked 98.7% of the 1,479 girls' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 21.2% of girls (24.6% in 1880, 7.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Nellie
  1. #16Mabel1,947
  2. #17Helen1,909
  3. #18Edna1,815
  4. #19Nellie1,752
  5. #20Sarah1,730
  6. #21Martha1,711
  7. #22Ella1,647
Biggest movers since 1888
Risers
  1. ↑ 635Hellen#1,276 → #641
  2. ↑ 569Diana#1,136 → #567
  3. ↑ 536Hope#1,136 → #600
  4. ↑ 519Adelle#1,276 → #757
  5. ↑ 519Ova#1,276 → #757
Fallers
  1. ↓ 667Zilpha#612 → #1,279
  2. ↓ 643Lular#636 → #1,279
  3. ↓ 616Dagmar#663 → #1,279
  4. ↓ 589Savanah#690 → #1,279
  5. ↓ 555Harry#724 → #1,279

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

boys

110,580 boys got a published name in 1889; 1 in 13,823 of them was named Nellie, which outranked 35.0% of the 1,111 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 38.9% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Nellie
  1. #673Tommy9
  2. #673Willam9
  3. #673Wilton9
  4. #722Nellie8
  5. #722Ace8
  6. #722Acie8
  7. #722Alfonzo8
  8. #789Ada7
  9. #789Adelard7
  10. #789Adolfo7

Tied with 66 names at #722; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1888
Risers
  1. ↑ 506Connie#1,031 → #525
  2. ↑ 483Hamilton#917 → #434
  3. ↑ 482Ballard#1,031 → #549
  4. ↑ 453Bertie#917 → #464
  5. ↑ 450Essie#1,031 → #581
Fallers
  1. ↓ 510Wendell#464 → #974
  2. ↓ 469Melton#505 → #974
  3. ↓ 462Enos#416 → #878
  4. ↓ 394Ruby#580 → #974
  5. ↓ 394Webb#580 → #974

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

See the top 100 for 1889 →