Nathaneal
Gift of God, a Hebrew name meaning "God has given".
Name Census estimates that about 886 living Americans carry the first name Nathaneal. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Nathaneal today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nathaneal births was 1999 (39 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nathaneal. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Nathaneal with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
886
~ 1 in 386,856 Americans
Peak year
1999
39 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2023 SSA rank
#8,709
Tracked since 1972
Census
Nathaneal in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 710 people with the first name Nathaneal, which placed it at #16,016 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
#16,016
National first-name rank
People counted
710
710 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
51.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nathaneal
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nathaneal is White at 51.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.5%) and Black (14.4%). 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 Nathaneal 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 Nathaneal at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White51.8% · 368
- Hispanic or Latino23.5% · 167
- Black or African American14.4% · 102
- Two or more races4.9% · 35
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.2% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 15
Popularity
Nathaneal: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nathaneal from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 318 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nathaneal 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 Nathaneal during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Nathaneals live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Nathaneal, while New York, Florida, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Nathaneal
The name Nathaneal has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture. It is derived from the Hebrew word "Nathaniel" which means "gift of God." The name can be traced back to ancient times, with variations in spelling including Nathanael, Nathaniel, and Nathaneel.
One of the earliest known references to the name appears in the New Testament of the Bible, where Nathanael is mentioned as one of the disciples of Jesus Christ. He is described as being from Cana in Galilee and is introduced by Philip to Jesus, who recognizes his integrity and refers to him as "an Israelite indeed, in whom there is no guile."
In the Middle Ages, the name Nathanael was popular among Christians, particularly in Europe. Several notable individuals bore this name, including Nathanael Carpenter (c. 1589-1628), an English clergyman and academic who served as the President of Harvard College from 1625 to 1628.
During the Renaissance period, Nathanael Culverwel (1619-1651) was an English philosopher and theologian known for his work "An Elegant and Learned Discourse of the Light of Nature." His treatise explored the relationship between reason and faith and was influential in the development of natural theology.
In the 18th century, Nathanael Greene (1742-1786) was a major general in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He played a crucial role in several notable battles, including the Battle of Guilford Court House, and is remembered as one of the most gifted military leaders of the conflict.
Another notable figure with this name was Nathanael West (1903-1940), an American author and satirist best known for his novels "The Day of the Locust" and "Miss Lonelyhearts." His works offered a biting critique of American society and explored themes of alienation and disillusionment.
In more recent times, Nathanael Obrecht (1639-1707) was a German composer and organist who made significant contributions to the development of baroque church music. His compositions, including numerous cantatas and organ works, showcased his mastery of counterpoint and harmonic structures.
These are just a few examples of the rich history and diverse individuals who have borne the name Nathaneal over the centuries, spanning various fields such as religion, academia, military, literature, and music.
People
Nathaneal + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nathaneal 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
Nathaneal: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nathaneal?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 886 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nathaneal 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 386,856 US residents.
Is Nathaneal a common name?
We classify Nathaneal as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 908 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nathaneal most popular?
The single biggest year for Nathaneal was 1999, when 39 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nathaneal is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nathaneal in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 710 people with the name Nathaneal, or 0.24 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #16,016 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 Nathaneal 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 Nathaneal?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nathaneal appears almost entirely male. Of the 713 people counted with this name, 99.7% 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 Nathaneal?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nathaneal is White at 51.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (23.5%) and Black (14.4%). 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 Nathaneal most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nathaneal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 51.8% (368 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 Nathaneal in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nathaneal a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nathaneal 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 Nathaneal still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nathaneal 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 Nathaneal 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 are named Nathaneal?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.