Celest
Of Latin origin, meaning "heavenly" or "celestial".
Name Census estimates that about 1,006 living Americans carry the first name Celest. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Celest today is around 29 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Celest births was 2004 (56 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Celest. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
1.0K
~ 1 in 340,710 Americans
Peak year
2004
56 babies that year
Average age
29
years old
2024 SSA rank
#6,968
Tracked since 1908
Popularity
Celest: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Celest from the 1900s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 362 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Celest by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Celest during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Celests live
Origin
Meaning and history of Celest
The name Celest has its origins in the Latin word "caelestis," meaning "heavenly" or "celestial." It is derived from the Latin word "caelum," which translates to "sky" or "heaven." The name's roots can be traced back to ancient Roman culture, where it was associated with the celestial realm and the divine.
In ancient Roman mythology, the name Celest was often used to refer to deities or celestial beings associated with the heavens, such as the goddess Venus or the personification of the night sky, Nox. The name's celestial connotations also made it a popular choice among early Christian families, who saw it as a way to honor the heavenly realm and their religious beliefs.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Celest can be found in the writings of the Roman philosopher and statesman Cicero, who lived from 106 BC to 43 BC. Cicero mentioned a woman named Celest in his work "De Officiis" (On Duties), although little is known about her beyond this reference.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Celest. One of the most famous was Celest Prouxl, a French Canadian author and Nobel Prize winner in Literature, who lived from 1892 to 1963. Her novel "Kamouraska" is considered a landmark work in Canadian literature.
Another prominent figure was Celest Albaret, a French woman who served as the long-time companion and secretary to the renowned writer Marcel Proust. Albaret's memoir, "Monsieur Proust," published in 1973, provided valuable insights into Proust's life and work.
In the realm of religion, Celest Evrard (1792-1871) was a Belgian nun and the co-founder of the Congregation of the Sisters of the Child Jesus, a Catholic religious order dedicated to education.
The name Celest also made its way into the world of art and music. Celest Ingrid (1840-1892) was a Swedish painter known for her portraits and landscapes, while Celest Vogt (1892-1976) was a Swiss composer and music educator whose works included operas and choral pieces.
Lastly, Celest Ramirez (1957-2016) was a Mexican-American artist and activist who gained recognition for her vibrant murals and advocacy work within the Chicano community in Los Angeles.
These are just a few examples of the notable individuals who have carried the name Celest throughout history, reflecting its enduring connection to the celestial realm and its diverse cultural and artistic influences.
People
Celest + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Celest as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Celest: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Celest?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,006 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Celest going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 340,710 US residents.
Is Celest a common name?
We classify Celest as "Rare". It ranks above 90.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,081 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Celest most popular?
The single biggest year for Celest was 2004, when 56 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Celest is about 29 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Celest a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Celest in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.