Nestor
Nestor was given to 113 boys in 2025, #1,535 among boys’ names; 10,430 Americans have been recorded with it since 1885 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 9,100 Americans named Nestor and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (87% of everyone recorded); the median is 30 years old and half are between 19 and 39.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Nestor by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Nestor mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Nestor is “a male given name from Ancient Greek, rare in English.” Its etymology gives the senses “to return safely” (νέομαι) and “homecoming” (νόστος).
From Ancient Greek Νέστωρ (Néstōr), possibly from νέομαι (néomai, “to return safely”), νόστος (nóstos, “homecoming”).
/ˈnɛstɚ/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Nestor?
#1,535 among boys’ names, 2025
Nestor fell from #1,386 in 2015 to #1,535 in 2025 among boys’ names, although its share of boys born rose from 65.2 to 66.2 per million.
300 babies in 1991, the peak
Nestor peaked in 1991, when 300 boys were given it, #586 among boys’ names. The 113 births of 2025 are 38% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 113 | #1,535 | 0.07 |
| 2024 | 97 | #1,718 | 0.06 |
| 2023 | 91 | #1,782 | 0.05 |
| 2022 | 76 | #2,017 | 0.04 |
| 2021 | 94 | #1,734 | 0.05 |
| 2020 | 89 | #1,740 | 0.05 |
| 2019 | 108 | #1,558 | 0.06 |
| 2018 | 96 | #1,667 | 0.05 |
| 2017 | 126 | #1,398 | 0.07 |
| 2016 | 107 | #1,552 | 0.06 |
Every recorded year (124)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 125 | #1,386 | 0.07 |
| 2014 | 108 | #1,502 | 0.06 |
| 2013 | 106 | #1,526 | 0.06 |
| 2012 | 115 | #1,445 | 0.06 |
| 2011 | 123 | #1,370 | 0.06 |
| 2010 | 165 | #1,130 | 0.09 |
| 2009 | 157 | #1,159 | 0.08 |
| 2008 | 194 | #1,006 | 0.10 |
| 2007 | 209 | #947 | 0.10 |
| 2006 | 201 | #935 | 0.10 |
| 2005 | 226 | #829 | 0.11 |
| 2004 | 197 | #881 | 0.10 |
| 2003 | 189 | #890 | 0.10 |
| 2002 | 196 | #846 | 0.10 |
| 2001 | 218 | #778 | 0.11 |
| 2000 | 236 | #726 | 0.12 |
| 1999 | 247 | #681 | 0.13 |
| 1998 | 226 | #728 | 0.12 |
| 1997 | 201 | #748 | 0.11 |
| 1996 | 237 | #684 | 0.13 |
| 1995 | 253 | #656 | 0.13 |
| 1994 | 271 | #631 | 0.14 |
| 1993 | 290 | #611 | 0.15 |
| 1992 | 298 | #595 | 0.15 |
| 1991 | 300 | #586 | 0.15 |
| 1990 | 264 | #622 | 0.13 |
| 1989 | 255 | #617 | 0.13 |
| 1988 | 216 | #643 | 0.11 |
| 1987 | 173 | #688 | 0.09 |
| 1986 | 133 | #787 | 0.07 |
| 1985 | 139 | #757 | 0.08 |
| 1984 | 115 | #817 | 0.06 |
| 1983 | 108 | #841 | 0.06 |
| 1982 | 109 | #852 | 0.06 |
| 1981 | 98 | #905 | 0.05 |
| 1980 | 106 | #866 | 0.06 |
| 1979 | 90 | #929 | 0.05 |
| 1978 | 94 | #888 | 0.06 |
| 1977 | 73 | #1,008 | 0.04 |
| 1976 | 80 | #937 | 0.05 |
| 1975 | 56 | #1,134 | 0.04 |
| 1974 | 85 | #876 | 0.05 |
| 1973 | 78 | #911 | 0.05 |
| 1972 | 66 | #998 | 0.04 |
| 1971 | 67 | #996 | 0.04 |
| 1970 | 79 | #903 | 0.04 |
| 1969 | 60 | #997 | 0.03 |
| 1968 | 58 | #964 | 0.03 |
| 1967 | 56 | #978 | 0.03 |
| 1966 | 57 | #964 | 0.03 |
| 1965 | 42 | #1,182 | 0.02 |
| 1964 | 45 | #1,157 | 0.02 |
| 1963 | 52 | #1,062 | 0.03 |
| 1962 | 59 | #1,000 | 0.03 |
| 1961 | 56 | #1,046 | 0.03 |
| 1960 | 51 | #1,091 | 0.02 |
| 1959 | 54 | #1,058 | 0.03 |
| 1958 | 60 | #990 | 0.03 |
| 1957 | 56 | #1,019 | 0.03 |
| 1956 | 34 | #1,328 | 0.02 |
| 1955 | 34 | #1,304 | 0.02 |
| 1954 | 44 | #1,131 | 0.02 |
| 1953 | 41 | #1,163 | 0.02 |
| 1952 | 31 | #1,367 | 0.02 |
| 1951 | 23 | #1,585 | 0.01 |
| 1950 | 27 | #1,413 | 0.02 |
| 1949 | 29 | #1,369 | 0.02 |
| 1948 | 26 | #1,449 | 0.01 |
| 1947 | 28 | #1,411 | 0.02 |
| 1946 | 24 | #1,460 | 0.01 |
| 1945 | 19 | #1,563 | 0.01 |
| 1944 | 10 | #2,420 | 0.01 |
| 1943 | 22 | #1,513 | 0.02 |
| 1942 | 18 | #1,717 | 0.01 |
| 1941 | 19 | #1,627 | 0.02 |
| 1940 | 19 | #1,609 | 0.02 |
| 1939 | 15 | #1,848 | 0.01 |
| 1938 | 23 | #1,426 | 0.02 |
| 1937 | 13 | #2,062 | 0.01 |
| 1936 | 25 | #1,350 | 0.02 |
| 1935 | 24 | #1,414 | 0.02 |
| 1934 | 29 | #1,262 | 0.03 |
| 1933 | 18 | #1,688 | 0.02 |
| 1932 | 17 | #1,832 | 0.02 |
| 1931 | 21 | #1,577 | 0.02 |
| 1930 | 32 | #1,271 | 0.03 |
| 1929 | 32 | #1,260 | 0.03 |
| 1928 | 28 | #1,406 | 0.03 |
| 1927 | 30 | #1,367 | 0.03 |
| 1926 | 24 | #1,550 | 0.02 |
| 1925 | 27 | #1,441 | 0.02 |
| 1924 | 26 | #1,522 | 0.02 |
| 1923 | 26 | #1,483 | 0.02 |
| 1922 | 14 | #2,310 | 0.01 |
| 1921 | 31 | #1,353 | 0.03 |
| 1920 | 19 | #1,860 | 0.02 |
| 1919 | 14 | #2,227 | 0.01 |
| 1918 | 21 | #1,691 | 0.02 |
| 1917 | 23 | #1,518 | 0.02 |
| 1916 | 29 | #1,258 | 0.03 |
| 1915 | 31 | #1,177 | 0.04 |
| 1914 | 24 | #1,214 | 0.04 |
| 1913 | 18 | #1,238 | 0.04 |
| 1912 | 12 | #1,500 | 0.03 |
| 1911 | 6 | #1,679 | 0.03 |
| 1910 | 7 | #1,383 | 0.04 |
| 1908 | 7 | #1,186 | 0.05 |
| 1907 | 9 | #978 | 0.06 |
| 1906 | 5 | #1,369 | 0.04 |
| 1905 | 5 | #1,366 | 0.04 |
| 1898 | 5 | #1,249 | 0.04 |
| 1897 | 5 | #1,178 | 0.04 |
| 1895 | 7 | #947 | 0.06 |
| 1885 | 5 | #1,043 | 0.05 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Nestor a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Nestor has been recorded only for boys: SSA lists no girls with the name in 124 years of records (it lists a name only in years with 5 or more babies of a sex).
Girls and boys named Nestor: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Nestor, and how old are they?
9,100 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 87% of the 10,430 Americans ever recorded as Nestor. The median Nestor alive today is 30 years old; half are between 19 and 39.
The 2020 Census counted 21,159 people named Nestor (50 women and girls, 21,109 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 8,788 born in the U.S. The Census count is 2.4 times that prediction. Possible reasons: the Census counts people born abroad, whom SSA’s files leave out, and it records the name people give, which SSA may have recorded under another spelling or as part of a compound name.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 65 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 531 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 1,020 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 3,110 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 3,050 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 1,330 |
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 Nestor born?
The states with the most babies named Nestor are California, Texas and Florida, with 90% of its births recorded by state in 2025.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 30 | #824 | 2.5× |
| Texas | 24 | #1,002 | 1.7× |
| Florida | 9 | #1,322 | 0.8× |
| Arizona | 7 | #827 | 1.1× |
Where Nestor is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Nestor is most over-represented in California: since 1910 it was given 2.5 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 Nestor 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 2 names spelled alike, given to 10,531 babies since 1880, Nestor is the most given (99% of them). In 2025 it was given to 113 of their 113 babies (100%), 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 Nestor
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 Nestor and names like it
- Compare Nestor and NesterBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1990sNestor peaked in 1991.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Nestor since 1910.
- Ancient Greek namesWiktionary’s origin for Nestor: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1991The year the most babies were named Nestor.
- The names of the MillennialsMost people named Nestor alive today were born 1981-1996.
- Names starting with NMost given first.