Girls' name · since 1880
Nelle
5,794 babies named Nelle in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1917. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #2,330 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #4,267 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 5,794
- born since 1880
- 1910s
- peak decade
Yes -- Nelle is the #4267 most popular girls' name in the U.S. today, with 5,794 recorded since 1880.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nelle has been recorded 5,794 times among girls since 1880, currently ranked #4267 nationally and more common than 75% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 1910s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1880 to 2025.
- #2,330 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #4,267 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 5,794 born since 1880
- 1910s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Nelle ranks #2,330 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #4,267 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 5,794 born since 1880, peaking in the 1910s.
- #2,330 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #4,267 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 5,794
- born since 1880
- 1910s
- peak decade
Nelle's 5,794 recorded births place it above 96.77% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
20 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by Tennessee.
How Nelle compares
5,794 Top 13% higher than 87% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Nelle's all-time total is 15x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Nelle | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 5,794 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 169 | 21 | 19,840 |
Nelle's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Nelle splits its recorded history at 1937: 13% of all births land in the more recent half, 87% in the earlier half, leaning more toward its earlier era than today's. The single quietest year was 1956 (5 births) -- compare that against the 1917 peak of 169 for a sense of just how much the name's popularity has swung.
Nelle popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1880–2025
- Peak year (1917)
- 169
- Annual births at peak, across 146 years of records
Nelle by decade
1910s is the heaviest window (1,201 births, 21% of the file).
1910s was Nelle's strongest decade.
1,201 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 21% of all-time use.
Nelle births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1880s
1880s
895 births
- 1890s
1890s
1,125 births
- 1900s
1900s
735 births
- 1910s
1910s
1,201 births
- 1920s
1920s
868 births
- 1930s 282
1930s
282 births
- 1940s 140
1940s
140 births
- 1950s 91
1950s
91 births
- 1960s 47
1960s
47 births
- 1970s 17
1970s
17 births
- 1980s 22
1980s
22 births
- 2000s 35
2000s
35 births
- 2010s 151
2010s
151 births
- 2020s 185
2020s
185 births
What this shows Peak: 1910s at 1,201 births (21% of all-time use).
How Nelle compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Nelle's total volume
Nelle by state
Where Nelle concentrates geographically, total births since 1880
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | Tennessee | | 356 | 6.1% |
| #2 | Georgia | | 260 | 4.5% |
| #3 | North Carolina | | 120 | 2.1% |
| #4 | South Carolina | | 117 | 2.0% |
| #5 | Pennsylvania | | 88 | 1.5% |
| #6 | Kentucky | | 79 | 1.4% |
| #7 | Texas | | 74 | 1.3% |
| #8 | Alabama | | 67 | 1.2% |
356 of 5,794 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 20 reporting states.
Nelle appears in 20 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Nelle? ▼
Where does Nelle sit in the SSA name archive? ▼
When was Nelle most popular? ▼
Where is Nelle most popular? ▼
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What names are similar to Nelle? ▼
What to do with Nelle's data
- Nelle's decade-level peak was the 1910s (1,201 total births); usage has since declined to 185 in the 2020s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Tennessee records the most Nelles (356 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. Tennessee names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Nelle
Nearby Names Like Nelle
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Nelle
Compare Nelle side by side: Nelle vs Nellie Nelle vs Nell Nelle vs Nelda
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Nelle
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Nelle: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1917)
Similar record span (~145 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, 1880–2025 (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 Nelle 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.