Boys' name · since 1916
Jester
66 babies named Jester in U.S. Social Security records since 1916, with the highest year being 1920. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #20,227 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 66
- born since 1916
- 1920s
- peak decade
Jester sits outside today's top ranks for boys, with 66 recorded since 1916.
Jester has 66 recorded births among boys since 1916, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1920s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1916 to 2016.
- #20,227 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- 66 born since 1916
- 1920s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Jester ranks #20,227 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 66 born since 1916, peaking in the 1920s.
- #20,227 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 66
- born since 1916
- 1920s
- peak decade
Jester's 66 recorded births place it above 55.42% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Jester's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Jester splits its recorded history at 1953: 48% of all births land in the more recent half, 52% in the earlier half, an evenly balanced pattern over time. The single quietest year was 1916 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1920 peak of 7 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Jester popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1916–2016
- Peak year (1920)
- 7
- Annual births at peak, across 101 years of records
Jester by decade
1920s is the heaviest window (18 births, 27% of the file).
1920s was Jester's strongest decade.
18 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 27% of all-time use.
Jester births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1910s
1910s
11 births
- 1920s
1920s
18 births
- 1930s 5
1930s
5 births
- 1950s 6
1950s
6 births
- 1980s 6
1980s
6 births
- 1990s 5
1990s
5 births
- 2000s
2000s
10 births
- 2010s 5
2010s
5 births
What this shows Peak: 1920s at 18 births (27% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Jester? ▼
Where does Jester sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Jester most popular? ▼
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What to do with Jester's data
- Jester's decade-level peak was the 1920s (18 total births); usage has since declined to 5 in the 2010s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Jester
Nearby Names Like Jester
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Jester
Compare Jester side by side: Jester vs Jesse Jester vs Jesus Jester vs Jessie
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Jester: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1920)
Similar record span (~100 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1916–2016 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Jester draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.