Natheniel
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift of God".
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Natheniel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Natheniel today is around 57 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Natheniel births was 1952 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Natheniel. 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 Natheniel. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
1952
5 babies that year
Average age
57
years old
1985 SSA rank
#7,263
Tracked since 1952
Popularity
Natheniel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Natheniel from the 1950s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 5 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
Natheniel 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 Natheniel 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 Natheniel
The name Natheniel has its origins in the Hebrew language, derived from the elements "נתן" (Natan) meaning "given" and "אל" (El) meaning "God." The full name translates to "Gift of God" or "Given by God." This name dates back to biblical times, mentioned in the Old Testament as one of the twelve spies sent by Moses to scout the land of Canaan.
Natheniel appears prominently in the Gospel of John, where he is introduced as a disciple of Jesus Christ. Described as an Israelite without guile, Natheniel was one of the first individuals called by Jesus to follow Him. The Bible portrays him as a man of honesty and integrity, and his interactions with Jesus are notable events in the New Testament.
One of the earliest recorded individuals bearing the name Natheniel was Natheniel Bacon, an English politician and colonial leader who lived from 1593 to 1676. He served as a member of parliament and played a significant role in the Virginia colony's early years.
In the realm of literature, Natheniel Hawthorne, the renowned American novelist and short story writer, was born in 1804 and passed away in 1864. He is best known for his works such as "The Scarlet Letter," "The House of the Seven Gables," and "Young Goodman Brown," which explored themes of sin, guilt, and human nature.
Another prominent historical figure with this name was Natheniel Woodhull, an American soldier and statesman born in 1722. He served as a brigadier general during the American Revolutionary War and was captured by the British in 1776, enduring harsh treatment as a prisoner of war.
Natheniel Bowditch, born in 1773, was an American mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of navigation. His work, "The New American Practical Navigator," became a seminal text for mariners and was widely used in the early 19th century.
Natheniel Parker Willis, an American author and poet, lived from 1806 to 1867. He co-founded the influential literary magazine "The New York Mirror" and gained recognition for his poetry and travel writing, particularly his works set in Europe and the Middle East.
People
Natheniel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Natheniel 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
Natheniel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Natheniel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Natheniel 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Natheniel a common name?
We classify Natheniel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Natheniel most popular?
The single biggest year for Natheniel was 1952, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Natheniel is about 57 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Natheniel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Natheniel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Natheniel 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 Natheniel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Natheniel 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 Natheniel 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Natheniel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.