Nation
A feminine name of Latin origin meaning "birth" or "of the nation".
Name Census estimates that about 465 living Americans carry the first name Nation. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 85.5% of registrations being male. The average person named Nation today is around 10 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nation births was 2020 (52 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nation. 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
465
~ 1 in 737,106 Americans
Peak year
2020
52 babies that year
Average age
10
years old
2024 SSA rank
#4,975
Tracked since 1997
Census
Nation in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 307 people with the first name Nation, which placed it at #29,019 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
#29,019
National first-name rank
People counted
307
307 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
35.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nation
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nation is White at 35.5%. The next largest groups are Black (30.3%) and Two or More Races (12.1%). 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 Nation 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 Nation at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White35.5% · 109
- Black or African American30.3% · 93
- Two or more races12.1% · 37
- Hispanic or Latino10.4% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.9% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native5.9% · 18
Gender
Gender distribution for Nation
Nation leans heavily male at 85.5% of total registrations, but 68 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Nation as a male name
- Ranked #4,975 in 2024
- 20 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2021 (44 births)
Nation as a female name
- Ranked #8,898 in 2022
- 12 female births in 2022
- Peak: 2022 (12 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nation leans strongly male. 253 people counted with this name were male (83.5%), compared with 50 female bearers (16.5%).
Popularity
Nation: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nation from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 186 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
Nation 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 Nation during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nations live
Origin
Meaning and history of Nation
The name Nation originates from the Latin word "natio", which means "birth" or "race". It was initially used to refer to a community of people who shared a common origin, language, and cultural traditions.
In ancient Rome, the term "natio" was employed to identify various ethnic groups within the empire. It served as a way to distinguish between different peoples and their respective customs and beliefs. The word "natio" eventually evolved into the modern English word "nation", reflecting the concept of a sovereign state or country.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Nation can be found in the writings of the Roman historian Tacitus, who lived in the 1st century AD. He mentioned the name in his work "Germania", where he described the various Germanic tribes and their distinct nationalities.
Throughout medieval times, the name Nation was occasionally used as a personal name, although it was relatively uncommon. One notable figure bearing this name was Nation the Grammarian, a 9th-century scholar from Constantinople who made significant contributions to the study of Greek grammar and literature.
During the Renaissance period, the name Nation gained more prominence as the concept of nationhood and national identity became increasingly important. One prominent individual with this name was Nation Crémieux (1572-1642), a French lawyer and statesman who played a crucial role in the development of French civil law.
In the 19th century, the name Nation was associated with the rise of nationalism and the formation of modern nation-states. One notable figure was Nation Lukanga (1828-1898), a Congolese leader and activist who fought against Belgian colonial rule and advocated for the independence of his people.
Another significant individual bearing this name was Nation Chansiri (1865-1919), a Thai writer and intellectual who played a pivotal role in the country's literary renaissance and the promotion of Thai culture and identity.
In the 20th century, the name Nation continued to be used, albeit infrequently. One notable figure was Nation Chetwode (1908-1986), an English cricketer and military officer who served in World War II.
It is important to note that while the name Nation has a rich historical significance, its usage as a personal name has been relatively uncommon throughout history. Nevertheless, it serves as a reminder of the enduring concepts of national identity, cultural heritage, and the unity of peoples.
People
Nation + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nation 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
Nation: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nation?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 465 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nation 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 737,106 US residents.
Is Nation a common name?
We classify Nation as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 469 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nation most popular?
The single biggest year for Nation was 2020, when 52 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nation is about 10 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nation in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 307 people with the name Nation, or 0.10 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #29,019 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 Nation 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 Nation?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nation leans strongly male. 253 people counted with this name were male (83.5%), compared with 50 female bearers (16.5%). 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 Nation?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nation is White at 35.5%. The next largest groups are Black (30.3%) and Two or More Races (12.1%). 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 Nation most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nation in the 2020 Census, accounting for 35.5% (109 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 Nation in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nation a male name?
Yes, 85.5% of people registered as Nation 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 Nation still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nation 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 Nation 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 Nation?
Find out how many Americans are named Nation on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.