Nelie
A feminine variant of the name Nellie, derived from Cornelia.
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Nelie. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Nelie today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nelie births was 1910 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nelie. 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 Nelie. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1910
6 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
1998 SSA rank
#15,872
Tracked since 1882
Census
Nelie in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 223 people with the first name Nelie, which placed it at #35,856 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
#35,856
National first-name rank
People counted
223
223 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
32.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nelie
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nelie is Black at 32.3%. The next largest groups are White (25.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (24.2%). 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 Nelie 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 Nelie at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American32.3% · 72
- White25.6% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander24.2% · 54
- Hispanic or Latino16.1% · 36
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 3
- Two or more races0.4% · 1
Popularity
Nelie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nelie from the 1880s through to the 1990s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 12 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1910s peak, Nelie remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nelie 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 Nelie 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 Nelie
The name Nelie is believed to have its origins in the Greek language, derived from the word "nelios," which means "sun." This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with solar deities or symbols in ancient Greek mythology and culture.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Nelie can be traced back to the Hellenistic period, around the 3rd century BCE. It was during this time that Greek influence and culture spread across the Mediterranean region and parts of the Middle East. The name may have gained popularity among Greek settlers and their descendants in these areas.
In ancient Greek mythology, there are references to a minor deity named Nelio, who was associated with the sun and its warmth. While not a major figure in the pantheon, the name Nelio may have served as an inspiration for the name Nelie, further reinforcing its solar connections.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Nelie. One of the earliest recorded was Nelie of Antioch, a Greek scholar and philosopher who lived in the 2nd century CE. She was known for her writings on ethics and virtue, which were widely studied in her time.
In the 5th century CE, there was a Christian saint known as Nelie of Carthage, who was revered for her charitable works and dedication to helping the poor and sick. Her feast day is still celebrated by some Christian denominations in parts of North Africa.
During the Byzantine era, a notable figure named Nelie Komnene was a member of the imperial family and a influential political figure in the 11th century. She was known for her diplomatic skills and played a crucial role in negotiations between the Byzantine Empire and its neighbors.
In the realm of literature, one of the most famous bearers of the name Nelie was Nelie Sackett, an English writer and poet who lived in the 17th century (1590-1668). Her works often explored themes of nature, love, and spirituality, and she was acclaimed for her lyrical style.
Another notable figure was Nelie Gomez, a Spanish artist and sculptor who lived in the 18th century (1712-1788). She was renowned for her intricate and detailed works, many of which can still be found in churches and museums across Spain.
While the name Nelie may have waned in popularity in more recent times, its rich history and connections to ancient Greek culture, mythology, and notable individuals throughout the centuries continue to make it a fascinating and enduring name.
People
Nelie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nelie 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
Nelie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nelie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nelie 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Nelie a common name?
We classify Nelie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 37 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nelie most popular?
The single biggest year for Nelie was 1910, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nelie is about 36 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nelie in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 223 people with the name Nelie, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #35,856 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 Nelie 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 Nelie?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Nelie leans strongly female. 226 people counted with this name were female (98.3%), compared with 4 male bearers (1.7%). 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 Nelie?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nelie is Black at 32.3%. The next largest groups are White (25.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (24.2%). 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 Nelie most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Nelie in the 2020 Census, accounting for 32.3% (72 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 Nelie in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nelie a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Nelie in the SSA data are female. 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 Nelie still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nelie 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 Nelie 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 Americans are named Nelie?
See how many people share the name Nelie on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.