Nathniel
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift of God."
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Nathniel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nathniel today is around 51 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nathniel births was 1962 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nathniel. 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 Nathniel. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1962
6 babies that year
Average age
51
years old
1987 SSA rank
#7,777
Tracked since 1962
Census
Nathniel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 103 people with the first name Nathniel, which placed it at #53,018 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
#53,018
National first-name rank
People counted
103
103 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.0
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
39.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nathniel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nathniel is White at 39.8%. The next largest groups are Black (37.9%) and Hispanic (15.5%). 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 Nathniel 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 Nathniel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White39.8% · 41
- Black or African American37.9% · 39
- Hispanic or Latino15.5% · 16
- Two or more races4.9% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Popularity
Nathniel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nathniel from the 1960s through to the 1980s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 6 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
Nathniel 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 Nathniel 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 Nathniel
The name Nathniel is derived from the Hebrew name נתנאל (Nathanel), which means "given of God" or "gift of God." The name's roots can be traced back to ancient Israel, where it was a popular name among the Israelites.
The earliest recorded use of the name Nathniel can be found in the Bible. In the Gospel of John, Nathniel is mentioned as one of the disciples of Jesus Christ. He is described as a man of great faith and integrity, known for his honesty and sincerity.
Throughout history, the name Nathniel has been borne by various notable figures. One of the earliest was Nathniel Bacon (c. 1593-1676), an English merchant and politician who played a significant role in the Virginia Company and the early colonization of Virginia.
Another prominent figure was Nathniel Hawthorne (1804-1864), the renowned American novelist and short story writer, best known for his works such as "The Scarlet Letter" and "The House of the Seven Gables." His literary contributions have had a lasting impact on American literature.
In the realm of science, Nathniel Bowditch (1773-1838) was a self-educated mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of navigation. His work, "The New American Practical Navigator," was widely used by sailors and navigators for decades.
During the American Civil War, Nathniel Lyon (1818-1861) was a Union Army general who played a crucial role in securing Missouri for the Union cause. He was the first Union general killed in the war, and his bravery and leadership earned him a place in American military history.
Lastly, Nathniel Ryder (1735-1819) was an American Revolutionary War soldier and politician who served as a member of the Continental Congress and as a judge in New Hampshire. His involvement in the founding of the United States and his service to the country have left a lasting legacy.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Nathniel, a name with rich biblical and cultural roots, symbolizing the gift of God.
People
Nathniel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nathniel 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
Nathniel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nathniel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nathniel 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Nathniel a common name?
We classify Nathniel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nathniel most popular?
The single biggest year for Nathniel was 1962, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nathniel is about 51 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nathniel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 103 people with the name Nathniel, or 0.03 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #53,018 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 Nathniel 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 Nathniel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nathniel appears almost entirely male. Of the 102 people counted with this name, 99.0% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Nathniel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nathniel is White at 39.8%. The next largest groups are Black (37.9%) and Hispanic (15.5%). 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 Nathniel most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nathniel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 39.8% (41 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 Nathniel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nathniel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nathniel 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 Nathniel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nathniel 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 Nathniel 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 share the name Nathniel?
Want to know how many Americans are named Nathniel? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.