Nathaniel
Nathaniel was given to 2,565 boys in 2025, #140 among boys’ names; 288,265 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 248,000 Americans named Nathaniel and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (86% of everyone recorded); the median is 27 years old and half are between 17 and 40.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Nathaniel by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Nathaniel mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Nathaniel is “a male given name from Hebrew.” Its etymology gives the sense “God has given” (literally).
Modification, under influence of Daniel, of Nathanael, from Ancient Greek Ναθαναήλ (Nathanaḗl), from Biblical Hebrew נְתַנְאֵל (Netan’el, literally “God has given”).
/nəˈθæn.jəl/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Nathaniel?
#140 among boys’ names, 2025
Nathaniel fell from #97 in 2015 to #140 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born fell from 2.2 to 1.5 per 1,000.
6,829 babies in 2002, the peak
Nathaniel peaked in 2002, when 6,829 babies were given it (6,813 boys, #62 among boys’ names). The 2,565 births of 2025 are 38% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2,565 | #140 | 1.5 |
| 2024 | 2,520 | #144 | 1.5 |
| 2023 | 2,533 | #143 | 1.5 |
| 2022 | 2,706 | #138 | 1.5 |
| 2021 | 2,834 | #133 | 1.6 |
| 2020 | 2,930 | #125 | 1.7 |
| 2019 | 3,097 | #122 | 1.7 |
| 2018 | 3,391 | #116 | 1.9 |
| 2017 | 3,541 | #112 | 1.9 |
| 2016 | 3,887 | #103 | 2.0 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 4,234 | #97 | 2.2 |
| 2014 | 4,317 | #94 | 2.2 |
| 2013 | 4,538 | #91 | 2.4 |
| 2012 | 4,795 | #84 | 2.5 |
| 2011 | 4,980 | #84 | 2.6 |
| 2010 | 5,110 | #81 | 2.7 |
| 2009 | 5,426 | #75 | 2.7 |
| 2008 | 5,858 | #77 | 2.9 |
| 2007 | 6,067 | #82 | 2.9 |
| 2006 | 6,627 | #69 | 3.2 |
| 2005 | 6,689 | #67 | 3.3 |
| 2004 | 6,675 | #68 | 3.4 |
| 2003 | 6,666 | #63 | 3.4 |
| 2002 | 6,813 | #62 | 3.5 |
| 2001 | 6,646 | #61 | 3.4 |
| 2000 | 6,797 | #61 | 3.5 |
| 1999 | 6,467 | #62 | 3.4 |
| 1998 | 6,427 | #60 | 3.4 |
| 1997 | 5,775 | #65 | 3.1 |
| 1996 | 5,420 | #69 | 2.9 |
| 1995 | 5,203 | #73 | 2.7 |
| 1994 | 5,029 | #78 | 2.6 |
| 1993 | 4,854 | #75 | 2.5 |
| 1992 | 4,687 | #79 | 2.3 |
| 1991 | 4,367 | #84 | 2.2 |
| 1990 | 4,348 | #86 | 2.1 |
| 1989 | 4,121 | #84 | 2.1 |
| 1988 | 4,054 | #81 | 2.1 |
| 1987 | 4,050 | #78 | 2.2 |
| 1986 | 4,032 | #78 | 2.2 |
| 1985 | 4,004 | #77 | 2.2 |
| 1984 | 3,600 | #80 | 2.0 |
| 1983 | 3,641 | #79 | 2.0 |
| 1982 | 3,939 | #75 | 2.2 |
| 1981 | 3,719 | #80 | 2.1 |
| 1980 | 3,492 | #86 | 2.0 |
| 1979 | 3,040 | #95 | 1.8 |
| 1978 | 2,925 | #94 | 1.8 |
| 1977 | 2,500 | #107 | 1.5 |
| 1976 | 2,209 | #114 | 1.4 |
| 1975 | 1,957 | #131 | 1.3 |
| 1974 | 1,609 | #153 | 1.0 |
| 1973 | 1,391 | #169 | 0.89 |
| 1972 | 1,208 | #192 | 0.74 |
| 1971 | 1,210 | #200 | 0.68 |
| 1970 | 1,136 | #218 | 0.61 |
| 1969 | 991 | #231 | 0.55 |
| 1968 | 921 | #235 | 0.53 |
| 1967 | 976 | #226 | 0.56 |
| 1966 | 903 | #235 | 0.51 |
| 1965 | 1,071 | #223 | 0.58 |
| 1964 | 1,023 | #238 | 0.51 |
| 1963 | 1,026 | #233 | 0.51 |
| 1962 | 1,085 | #234 | 0.52 |
| 1961 | 1,049 | #244 | 0.49 |
| 1960 | 1,146 | #239 | 0.54 |
| 1959 | 1,159 | #235 | 0.54 |
| 1958 | 1,102 | #235 | 0.52 |
| 1957 | 1,262 | #213 | 0.59 |
| 1956 | 1,309 | #205 | 0.62 |
| 1955 | 1,334 | #195 | 0.65 |
| 1954 | 1,228 | #203 | 0.60 |
| 1953 | 1,267 | #193 | 0.64 |
| 1952 | 1,258 | #189 | 0.65 |
| 1951 | 1,247 | #187 | 0.66 |
| 1950 | 1,223 | #182 | 0.68 |
| 1949 | 1,192 | #179 | 0.67 |
| 1948 | 1,159 | #180 | 0.66 |
| 1947 | 1,100 | #187 | 0.60 |
| 1946 | 977 | #186 | 0.60 |
| 1945 | 853 | #181 | 0.63 |
| 1944 | 864 | #184 | 0.63 |
| 1943 | 839 | #191 | 0.59 |
| 1942 | 843 | #188 | 0.61 |
| 1941 | 829 | #182 | 0.67 |
| 1940 | 833 | #176 | 0.72 |
| 1939 | 770 | #183 | 0.70 |
| 1938 | 749 | #186 | 0.68 |
| 1937 | 703 | #187 | 0.66 |
| 1936 | 738 | #179 | 0.71 |
| 1935 | 747 | #180 | 0.72 |
| 1934 | 782 | #174 | 0.76 |
| 1933 | 728 | #178 | 0.73 |
| 1932 | 781 | #176 | 0.75 |
| 1931 | 659 | #199 | 0.63 |
| 1930 | 754 | #185 | 0.69 |
| 1929 | 760 | #184 | 0.71 |
| 1928 | 728 | #194 | 0.66 |
| 1927 | 769 | #187 | 0.68 |
| 1926 | 821 | #176 | 0.74 |
| 1925 | 810 | #178 | 0.73 |
| 1924 | 800 | #180 | 0.71 |
| 1923 | 721 | #193 | 0.66 |
| 1922 | 800 | #175 | 0.74 |
| 1921 | 748 | #187 | 0.68 |
| 1920 | 837 | #166 | 0.79 |
| 1919 | 748 | #175 | 0.76 |
| 1918 | 661 | #193 | 0.65 |
| 1917 | 640 | #189 | 0.69 |
| 1916 | 590 | #194 | 0.66 |
| 1915 | 554 | #197 | 0.65 |
| 1914 | 470 | #185 | 0.72 |
| 1913 | 337 | #201 | 0.66 |
| 1912 | 356 | #164 | 0.83 |
| 1911 | 207 | #161 | 0.92 |
| 1910 | 232 | #139 | 1.2 |
| 1909 | 143 | #172 | 0.87 |
| 1908 | 150 | #160 | 1.0 |
| 1907 | 124 | #175 | 0.84 |
| 1906 | 101 | #179 | 0.76 |
| 1905 | 117 | #168 | 0.88 |
| 1904 | 105 | #174 | 0.82 |
| 1903 | 105 | #165 | 0.88 |
| 1902 | 88 | #189 | 0.72 |
| 1901 | 92 | #165 | 0.86 |
| 1900 | 118 | #179 | 0.78 |
| 1899 | 72 | #190 | 0.68 |
| 1898 | 90 | #176 | 0.73 |
| 1897 | 43 | #276 | 0.38 |
| 1896 | 73 | #207 | 0.61 |
| 1895 | 72 | #201 | 0.61 |
| 1894 | 77 | #192 | 0.67 |
| 1893 | 58 | #224 | 0.52 |
| 1892 | 78 | #197 | 0.64 |
| 1891 | 46 | #238 | 0.45 |
| 1890 | 75 | #178 | 0.68 |
| 1889 | 48 | #236 | 0.43 |
| 1888 | 63 | #222 | 0.52 |
| 1887 | 57 | #204 | 0.56 |
| 1886 | 59 | #221 | 0.53 |
| 1885 | 54 | #224 | 0.50 |
| 1884 | 56 | #225 | 0.49 |
| 1883 | 49 | #224 | 0.47 |
| 1882 | 57 | #219 | 0.50 |
| 1881 | 48 | #221 | 0.48 |
| 1880 | 60 | #205 | 0.54 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Nathaniel a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Nathaniel has been given almost only to boys: 1,162 girls in 146 years of records.
Girls and boys named Nathaniel: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Nathaniel, and how old are they?
248,000 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 86% of the 288,265 Americans ever recorded as Nathaniel. The median Nathaniel alive today is 27 years old; half are between 17 and 40.
The 2020 Census counted 189,977 people named Nathaniel (352 women and girls, 189,625 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 239,083 born in the U.S. The Census count is 21% below that prediction. Possible reasons: people who give a short form or another name to the Census, and a survival estimate that can run high.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 2,840 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 14,700 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 24,900 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 66,000 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 96,300 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 42,800 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Nathaniel born?
The states with the most babies named Nathaniel are California, Texas and Florida, with 37% of its births recorded by state in 2025.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 453 | #81 | 0.9× |
| Texas | 335 | #118 | 0.8× |
| Florida | 162 | #135 | 1.1× |
| New York | 141 | #138 | 0.8× |
| North Carolina | 101 | #120 | 1.2× |
| Pennsylvania | 89 | #143 | 0.9× |
| New Jersey | 85 | #113 | 0.7× |
| Illinois | 77 | #154 | 0.9× |
| Georgia | 76 | #164 | 1.3× |
| Ohio | 69 | #188 | 1.0× |
Where Nathaniel is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Nathaniel is most over-represented in South Carolina: since 1910 it was given 1.9 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Nathaniel with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 323,763 babies since 1880, Nathaniel is the most given (89% of them). In 2025 it was given to 2,565 of their 3,046 babies (84%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Nathaniel
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Nathaniel and names like it
- Compare Nathaniel and NathanaelBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 2000sNathaniel peaked in 2002.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Nathaniel since 1910.
- Hebrew namesWiktionary’s origin for Nathaniel: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 2002The year the most babies were named Nathaniel.
- The names of Generation ZMost people named Nathaniel alive today were born 1997-2012.
- Names starting with NMost given first.