Elite
A French name implying excellence, superiority, or belonging to the upper crust.
Name Census estimates that about 76 living Americans carry the first name Elite. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 85.7% of registrations being male. The average person named Elite today is around 6 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elite births was 2022 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elite. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Elite. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
76
~ 1 in 4,509,926 Americans
Peak year
2022
14 babies that year
Average age
6
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,212
Tracked since 2012
Census
Elite in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 154 people with the first name Elite, which placed it at #44,677 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#44,677
National first-name rank
People counted
154
154 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
33.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Elite
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elite is Black at 33.1%. The next largest groups are White (32.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (14.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Elite described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Elite at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American33.1% · 51
- White32.5% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander14.9% · 23
- Hispanic or Latino12.3% · 19
- Two or more races4.5% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 4
Gender
Gender distribution for Elite
Elite leans heavily male at 85.7% of total registrations, but 11 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Elite as a male name
- Ranked #9,212 in 2024
- 8 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2023 (12 births)
Elite as a female name
- Ranked #15,987 in 2022
- 5 female births in 2022
- Peak: 2018 (6 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Elite on both sides of the split. Of the 148 people counted with this name, 71 were male (48.0%) and 77 were female (52.0%).
Popularity
Elite: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Elite from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 52 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Elite 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 Elite during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Elite
The name Elite is a modern English word derived from the French term "élite," which means "the best or most skilled members of a group." The word "élite" itself comes from the Old French "eslite," meaning "to choose." The origin of the name Elite can be traced back to the late 17th century, when it was first used to refer to a select group or class of individuals distinguished by their social status, wealth, or talent.
As a given name, Elite is relatively new and does not have a long historical lineage. It is primarily used as a modern invention, likely inspired by the idea of being part of an elite class or group. While the name does not have direct ties to any specific culture or religion, its meaning and connotation reflect the aspirations of parents who wish their child to be exceptional and successful.
One of the earliest recorded instances of Elite as a given name dates back to the late 20th century. However, it is difficult to pinpoint the exact first use or identify the first person to bear this name, as it is a relatively recent coinage. Nonetheless, the name has gained popularity in recent decades, particularly in English-speaking countries.
Despite its modern origins, there are a few notable individuals who have carried the name Elite throughout history:
1. Elite Gobert (born 1980) is a French professional basketball player who currently plays for the Utah Jazz in the NBA.
2. Elite Jerrel (born 1992) is an American professional basketball player who plays for the Portland Trail Blazers in the NBA.
3. Elite Sinclair (born 1988) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played for several teams in the National Hockey League (NHL).
4. Elite Edmondson (born 1985) is a British track cyclist who has won multiple medals at the Olympic Games and World Championships.
5. Elite Sheppard (born 1991) is an Australian professional rugby league footballer who currently plays for the Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs in the NRL.
While the name Elite is relatively new and lacks a deep historical context, its meaning and connotation reflect the aspirations of modern parents who wish to imbue their children with a sense of excellence and distinction.
People
Elite + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elite as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Elite: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elite?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 76 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elite 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 4,509,926 US residents.
Is Elite a common name?
We classify Elite as "Very Rare". It ranks above 60.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 77 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elite most popular?
The single biggest year for Elite was 2022, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elite is about 6 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Elite in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 154 people with the name Elite, or 0.05 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #44,677 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Elite in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Elite?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Elite on both sides of the split. Of the 148 people counted with this name, 71 were male (48.0%) and 77 were female (52.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Elite?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Elite is Black at 33.1%. The next largest groups are White (32.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (14.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Elite most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Elite in the 2020 Census, accounting for 33.1% (51 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Elite in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Elite a male name?
Yes, 85.7% of people registered as Elite in the SSA data are male. 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.
Is Elite still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Elite in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Elite can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
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.
How many people are called Elite?
You can see how many people share the name Elite on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.