Nellie
Nellie is a name with multiple cultural origins: English, Swedish.
- English
- Swedish
Meaning & Origin of Nellie
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Nellie is a name with multiple cultural origins: English, Swedish.
Origin data from Behind the Name .
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
- Swedish
The Story of Nellie
Nellie first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 995 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1918: 4,048 births, good for #65 nationwide. About 20% of every Nellie on record arrived during the 1910s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Nellie ranks #486 for baby girls with 628 births, rising sharply (+89% over the past five years). All told, over 153K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Nellie
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Nellie. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Nellie
Phonetically similar names — useful when Nellie is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Nellie
What does the name Nellie mean?
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How popular is Nellie in 2026?
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In which U.S. states is Nellie most popular?
Is Nellie a unisex name?
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What are nicknames or variants of Nellie?
About the name Nellie
Nellie is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 153K births in the dataset. Nellie's peak popularity came in 1918 when it ranked #14. Use the chart and map above to compare Nellie's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1918 →
- Names of the 1910s →
- Names starting with "N" →
- Browse all girl names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.