Nell
Nell was the 1628th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 128 babies. Its best year was 1886, when it ranked 144th; the most babies were born in 1917 (766). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,251 places. More babies were named Nell in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning pet form of Eleanor, Ellen or Helen · English
Say it NEL /nɛl/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,628 girls, up 645 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 128girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1917766 babies
- Total since 1880
- 27,710babies recorded
What does the name Nell mean?
Nell is an old English pet form of Eleanor, Ellen and Helen. Helen and Ellen go back to Greek Helénē, of unknown origin; DMNES calls Eleanor of uncertain origin too. The actress Nell Gwyn and Dickens's Little Nell made the name familiar. In the US it was most common around 1900 to 1920.
How sure is this? Well established. Nell has no meaning of its own; the names it shortens are of uncertain origin.
Related names: Nellie, Eleanor, Ellen, Helen, Nelly.
See also: English names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Nell', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Eleanor', DMNES (Durham University)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Ellen', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Nell
The usual nicknames for Nell are Nellie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Nell in the last five years, 401 were named Nellie, against 352 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nellie · also for Eleanor, Helen, Ellen | Traditional | #533 | 2,475 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Nells go by each one.
Nell popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 98 since 1900.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,628 | 128 |
| 2020 | #2,273 | 79 |
| 2010 | #5,741 | 24 |
| 2000 | #4,371 | 28 |
| 1990 | #3,489 | 31 |
| 1980 | #2,422 | 40 |
| 1970 | #2,225 | 36 |
| 1960 | #1,183 | 85 |
| 1950 | #684 | 157 |
| 1940 | #393 | 296 |
| 1930 | #294 | 511 |
| 1920 | #256 | 661 |
| 1910 | #203 | 318 |
| 1900 | #198 | 256 |
| 1890 | #160 | 221 |
| 1880 | #170 | 77 |
How popular is Nell, counting every spelling?
Nell is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #1,258 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,628 for Nell on its own. Together these spellings went to 167 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Nell | 128 | #1,628 | 617 |
| Nelle | 33 | #4,325 | 148 |
| Nel | 6 | #14,435 | 34 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Nell?
128 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Nell (0.04 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Nell born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 66 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Nell.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Nell?
About 5,600 people born in the US named Nell are alive today, with a median age of 67; half are between 22 and 82. That makes Nell a name most people associate with older generations. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Nell by state
How common Nell was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Colorado (3.5×), Illinois (3.3×), New York (1.9×), Virginia (1.6×). In 33 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Nell: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Nell, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Nell · Sibling names for Nell
Nell is also a nickname for Eleanor, Penelope, Helen, Helena, Eleanora and Ellen.
Questions about the name Nell
What does Nell mean?
Nell means “pet form of Eleanor, Ellen or Helen” (English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Nell?
Nell was the 1628th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 128 babies. Its best year was 1886, when it ranked 144th; the most babies were born in 1917 (766). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,251 places. More babies were named Nell in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Nell a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Nell in the US.
Where is Nell most popular?
In 2021–2025, Nell was most common in Colorado (0.27 per 1,000 girls), followed by Illinois and Massachusetts.