Nesta
A feminine name derived from Nest, a Welsh diminutive of Agnes.
Name Census estimates that about 163 living Americans carry the first name Nesta. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 52.2% of registrations being male. The average person named Nesta today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Nesta births was 2018 (17 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Nesta. 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 Nesta with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
163
~ 1 in 2,102,787 Americans
Peak year
2018
17 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2018 SSA rank
#7,991
Tracked since 1928
Census
Nesta in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 411 people with the first name Nesta, which placed it at #23,711 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
#23,711
National first-name rank
People counted
411
411 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
38.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nesta
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nesta is White at 38.7%. The next largest groups are Black (35.0%) and Hispanic (11.7%). 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 Nesta 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 Nesta at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White38.7% · 159
- Black or African American35.0% · 144
- Hispanic or Latino11.7% · 48
- Two or more races10.0% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 7
Gender
Gender distribution for Nesta
Nesta is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 207 total registrations, 108 (52.2%) were male and 99 (47.8%) were female.
Nesta as a male name
- Ranked #7,991 in 2018
- 10 male births in 2018
- Peak: 2014 (10 births)
Nesta as a female name
- Ranked #9,353 in 2024
- 11 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1937 (11 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Nesta on both sides of the split. Of the 411 people counted with this name, 177 were male (43.1%) and 234 were female (56.9%).
Popularity
Nesta: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Nesta from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 88 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2010s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Nesta 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 Nesta 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 Nesta
The name Nesta has its origins in the Welsh language and culture, dating back to medieval times. It is believed to be derived from the Welsh word "nest," which means "home" or "nest." This name was initially given to children, especially girls, as a way to express the idea of warmth, comfort, and a sense of belonging.
Nesta has a long and rich history, with several notable references in Welsh literature and folklore. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Mabinogion, a collection of medieval Welsh tales and stories dating back to the 12th and 13th centuries. In these tales, Nesta is mentioned as the name of a beautiful and virtuous woman.
Throughout the centuries, Nesta has been a popular name among the Welsh nobility and aristocracy. One of the most famous historical figures bearing this name was Nesta ferch Rhys (c. 1073-1135), the daughter of Rhys ap Tewdwr, the last sovereign Prince of South Wales. Nesta played a significant role in the political and social dynamics of medieval Wales, and her descendants went on to become influential figures in their own right.
Another notable figure was Nesta de Lacy (c. 1156-1212), a Welsh noblewoman who was the daughter of Gwladus ferch Llewelyn and Rhys ap Gruffydd, Prince of Deheubarth. Nesta was married to Robert de Lacy, Lord of Pontefract, and their union helped strengthen the ties between the Welsh and Norman nobility.
In the literary world, Nesta Webster (1876-1960) was a prominent English writer and historian known for her works on the French Revolution and conspiracy theories. Although not of Welsh descent, her choice of the name Nesta reflects the enduring appeal of this Welsh name.
Another notable figure was Nesta Wyn Ellis (1920-2018), a Welsh author and playwright who made significant contributions to the preservation and promotion of the Welsh language and culture. Her plays and novels explored themes of Welsh identity and the challenges faced by rural communities.
While the name Nesta has its roots in the Welsh language and culture, it has gained popularity across different regions and cultures over time. Its connection to the concepts of home, warmth, and belonging has resonated with many, making it a cherished name choice for generations.
People
Nesta + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Nesta 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
Nesta: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Nesta?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 163 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Nesta 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 2,102,787 US residents.
Is Nesta a common name?
We classify Nesta as "Very Rare". It ranks above 71.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 207 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Nesta most popular?
The single biggest year for Nesta was 2018, when 17 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Nesta is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Nesta in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 411 people with the name Nesta, or 0.14 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #23,711 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 Nesta 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 Nesta?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Nesta on both sides of the split. Of the 411 people counted with this name, 177 were male (43.1%) and 234 were female (56.9%). 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 Nesta?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Nesta is White at 38.7%. The next largest groups are Black (35.0%) and Hispanic (11.7%). 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 Nesta most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Nesta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 38.7% (159 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 Nesta in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Nesta a male name?
Yes, 52.2% of people registered as Nesta 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 Nesta still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Nesta 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 Nesta 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 Nesta?
Want to know how many Americans are named Nesta? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.