Nat
A masculine diminutive of the Hebrew name Nathan, meaning "he gave".
Name Census estimates that about 653 living Americans carry the first name Nat. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nat today is around 68 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nat births was 1915 (61 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nat. 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
- • The typical person named Nat is about 68 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Nats were born before 1968.
People living today
653
~ 1 in 524,892 Americans
Peak year
1915
61 babies that year
Average age
68
years old
2023 SSA rank
#13,553
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Nat: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nat from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 444 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nat 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 Nat during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nats live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. New York, Texas, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Nat, while Virginia, Kentucky, Tennessee recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 60 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nat
The name Nat is a diminutive form of the more formal name Nathaniel, which has its origins in the Hebrew language. Nathaniel translates to "Gift of God" or "Given by God" and is derived from the Hebrew words "Natan" meaning "to give" and "El" meaning "God". The name has been in use since ancient times and can be found in various religious texts, including the Bible.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Nathaniel can be found in the New Testament of the Bible, where it is mentioned as the name of one of Jesus' apostles, Nathanael. This apostle is often referred to as Nathanael of Cana and is believed to have lived in the 1st century AD.
Throughout history, the name Nat has been used as a shortened form of Nathaniel by numerous notable individuals. One of the earliest examples is Nat Turner, an American enslaved man who led a famous slave rebellion in Virginia in 1831. This event, known as the Nat Turner Rebellion, was a significant event in the history of the anti-slavery movement in the United States.
Another famous bearer of the name Nat was Nat King Cole, an American singer and jazz pianist who rose to prominence in the 1940s and 1950s. Born Nathaniel Adams Coles in 1919, he was widely known for his smooth baritone voice and his hits such as "Unforgettable" and "Mona Lisa". Nat King Cole passed away in 1965 at the age of 45.
In the realm of literature, Nat can be found in the works of acclaimed author Charles Dickens. One of his characters, Nathaniel Winkle, from the novel "The Pickwick Papers" published in 1837, was often referred to as Nat Winkle.
Moving to the world of sports, Nat Peeples was an American baseball player who played in the Negro Leagues from 1925 to 1945. He was born Nathaniel Peeples in 1897 and was known for his excellent defensive skills as a shortstop.
Lastly, Nat Hentoff, an American historian, novelist, jazz critic, and activist, was a prominent figure in the 20th century. Born Nathaniel Hentoff in 1925, he was a staunch advocate for civil liberties and free speech, and he wrote extensively on jazz music and political issues.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Nat
People
Nat + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nat as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with N
Other first names starting with N with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Nat: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nat?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 653 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nat 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 524,892 US residents.
Is Nat a common name?
We classify Nat as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,162 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nat most popular?
The single biggest year for Nat was 1915, when 61 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nat is about 68 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Nat a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nat 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.
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.