Selton
A masculine English name of uncertain origin, potentially deriving from "Selton Hill."
Name Census estimates that about 2 living Americans carry the first name Selton. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Selton today is around 83 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Selton births was 1918 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Selton. 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 Selton is about 83 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Seltons were born before 1953.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Selton. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
2
~ 1 in 171,377,169 Americans
Peak year
1918
5 babies that year
Average age
83
years old
1939 SSA rank
#3,903
Tracked since 1918
Popularity
Selton: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Selton from the 1910s through to the 1930s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, 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
Selton 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 Selton 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 Selton
The given name Selton has its roots in the ancient Germanic languages, specifically in the Old Frisian and Old Saxon dialects. It is derived from the Proto-Germanic word *Saljan, which means "to dwell" or "to inhabit." This name was particularly popular among the Frisian and Saxon tribes that inhabited the coastal regions of modern-day Germany and the Netherlands during the early medieval period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Selton can be found in the Fredegar Chronicle, a 7th-century Frankish chronicle that mentions a Frisian chieftain named Selton who led a revolt against the Frankish King Dagobert I in the year 626 AD. This historical reference suggests that the name was in use among the Frisians as early as the 7th century.
In the 9th century, Selton appears as the name of a Saxon nobleman mentioned in the Annales Regni Francorum, a major source for the history of the Carolingian Empire. This individual was involved in a conflict with the Frankish King Louis the Pious in the year 817 AD.
During the High Middle Ages, the name Selton was particularly popular among the nobility and ruling classes of the Low Countries. One notable figure bearing this name was Selton van Brederode, a 14th-century Dutch nobleman and military commander who fought in the Hundred Years' War (1337-1453). He was born in 1310 and died in 1368.
Another historically significant individual with the name Selton was Selton van Heemskerk, a 16th-century Dutch admiral and explorer. He was born in 1567 and is best known for leading an early Dutch expedition to the East Indies in 1598-1599, during which he was killed in a battle with the Portuguese near present-day Malaysia.
In the 17th century, Selton van Sommelsdijk, a Dutch statesman and diplomat, played a prominent role in the negotiations that led to the Peace of Westphalia, which ended the Thirty Years' War in 1648. He was born in 1591 and died in 1653.
While the name Selton has largely fallen out of use in modern times, it remains a part of the historical and cultural heritage of the Germanic peoples, particularly in the Low Countries and northern Germany. Its ancient roots and associations with notable figures from the past make it a unique and distinctive name with a rich historical significance.
People
Selton + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Selton as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Selton: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Selton?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Selton 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 171,377,169 US residents.
Is Selton a common name?
We classify Selton as "Very Rare". It ranks above 4.3% 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 Selton most popular?
The single biggest year for Selton was 1918, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Selton is about 83 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 Selton in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Selton a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Selton 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 Selton still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Selton 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 Selton 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 many people are called Selton?
You can see how many Americans are named Selton on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.