Nelson
Top 1000
About Nelson
Nelson is a rather stiff and dated surname name that is sometimes used to honor distinguished South African activist Nelson Mandela, as Celine Dion did for one of her twin boys. Other notable associations are with the British Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, novelist Nelson Algren and movie operetta star Nelson Eddy. It was also the given name of "Rabbit" Angstrom, protagonist of John Updike's series of novels.
Nelson's highest popularity was in the 1930s and forties, when it was in the Top 200.
As of October 2026, Nelson ranked #825 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #136 in 1882.
Editor's take: The name Nelson is a boy's name of English origin meaning "son of Neil".
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #645 | 409 | 212.9 |
| 2015 | #627 | 426 | 222.3 |
| 2016 | #621 | 431 | 227.1 |
| 2017 | #631 | 411 | 222 |
| 2018 | #672 | 374 | 205.9 |
| 2019 | #655 | 406 | 226.3 |
| 2020 | #670 | 388 | 224.8 |
| 2021 | #722 | 358 | 204.6 |
| 2022 | #799 | 315 | 180.4 |
| 2023 | #797 | 311 | 181.8 |
| 2024 | #778 | 322 | 186.9 |
| 2025 | #825 | 300 | 175.6 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Nelson.
- Teddie
- Rodney
- Jed
- Eddie
- Carleton
- Howie
- Dale
- Clint
- Reggie
- Wayne
- Alvin
- Coleman
- Bret
- Wilson
- Jefferson
- Morty
- Melvin
- Todd
- Derrek
- Kurtis
Nelson on lists
Famous Nelsons
- Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
1st President of South Africa
- Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller
41st Vice President of the United States
- Nelson Piquet
Brazilian racing driver
- Nelson Angelo Piquet
Brazilian racing driver
- Nelson Wilmarch Aldrich
U.S. Senator from Rhode Island
- Nelson Antonio Haedo Valdez
Paraguayan footballer
- Nelson Algren
American novelist
- Nelson Ascencio
American actor/comedian
- Nelson S. Bond
American writer
- Nelson Dawson
English artist
- Nelson DeCastro
American comic book artist
- Nelson Richard DeMille
American author
- Nelson Ackerman Eddy
American singer
- Nelson Freire
Brazilian pianist
- Nelson George
American writer/filmmaker
- Nelson Illingworth
Australian sculptor
- Nelson Ned
Brazilian singer
- Nelson Doubleday Jr.
American businessman
- Nelson Goodman
American philosopher
- Nelson Franklin
American actor
- Nelson Bunker Hunt
American businessman
- Nelson A. Miles
American soldier
- Nelson Poynter
American newspaper publisher
- Nelson Smock Riddle
American bandleader
- Nelson Rodrigues
Brazilian playwright
- Nelson Briles
American baseball pitcher
- Nelson Carmichael
American skier
- Nelson Peltz
American businessman and father of actress Nicola Peltz
- Nelson Oduber
prime minister of Aruba
- Nelson Dewey
American politician
- Baby Face Nelson (original name Lester Joseph Gillis)
diminutive American gangster
- Horatio Nelson (Lord Nelson)
British admiral
- Prince Rogers Nelson
American musician
- Nelson Angelil (b. 2010)
son of French Canadian singer Celine Dion
- Nelson Cabral Semedo
Portuguese professional footballer
Nelson in pop culture
- Nelson Van Alden
character on TV's "Boardwalk Empire"
- Nelson Biederman IV
character in film "Let's Go to Prison"
- Nelson
from the movie "Flatliners"
- Nelson Minkler
from TV series "Even Stevens"
- Nelson Tibideaux
from TV series "The Cosby Show"
- Nelson Muntz
bully that says "Ha,ha!" in "The Simpsons"
- Nelson
DJ's wealthy boyfriend on Full House
- Ferdinand "Foggy" Nelson
character in Marvel's "Daredevil"
- Nelson Rose
female character on TV's "SMILF"
- Nelson
city in New Zealand