Newt
Small lizard-like amphibian with a tail even as an adult.
Name Census estimates that about 311 living Americans carry the first name Newt. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Newt today is around 34 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Newt births was 1914 (20 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Newt. 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.
People living today
311
~ 1 in 1,102,104 Americans
Peak year
1914
20 babies that year
Average age
34
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,578
Tracked since 1880
Census
Newt in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 338 people with the first name Newt, which placed it at #27,177 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
#27,177
National first-name rank
People counted
338
338 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
77.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Newt
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Newt is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Newt 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 Newt at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.8% · 263
- Black or African American10.7% · 36
- Two or more races5.3% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.4% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 6
Popularity
Newt: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Newt from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 13 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 120 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1910s peak, Newt remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Newt 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 Newt during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Newts live
Origin
Meaning and history of Newt
The first name Newt has its origins in Middle English, derived from the Old English word "newt" or "evete," which referred to a small amphibious creature. The name likely emerged during the Late Medieval period, when it was common to adopt names inspired by nature and the environment.
While its precise origins are unclear, the name Newt may have initially been used as a nickname or a descriptive term for someone who exhibited characteristics reminiscent of the agile and resilient newt. As a given name, it gained popularity among the English-speaking population, particularly in rural areas where people had a close connection to the natural world.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Newt can be found in the English county of Staffordshire, where a Newt Gist was mentioned in a tax record from the early 16th century. However, the name's usage was relatively rare until the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the first name Newt. One of the most famous was Newt Gingrich, an American politician and author who served as the 58th Speaker of the United States House of Representatives from 1995 to 1999. Born Newton Leroy Gingrich in 1943, he played a significant role in the Republican Revolution of the 1990s.
Another prominent figure with the name Newt was Newt Loken, an American baseball player born in 1891. He played as an outfielder for several Major League Baseball teams, including the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Athletics, during the early 20th century.
Newt Brown, born in 1849, was a renowned American artist and illustrator known for his intricate wood engravings and illustrations in publications such as Harper's Weekly and Scribner's Monthly. His artistic works captured the essence of American life during the latter half of the 19th century.
Newt Newhouse, born in 1934, was an American businessman and philanthropist who served as the chairman of Advance Publications, a media company based in New York City. He played a pivotal role in the growth and success of the company's various publications, including Condé Nast and several newspapers.
In the realm of literature, Newt Gingrich, born in 1915, was an American poet and novelist known for his vivid descriptions of rural life in the American South. His works, such as the novel "The Little Fires," earned him critical acclaim and recognition as an important voice in Southern literature.
While the name Newt has had a relatively modest presence throughout history, it has been borne by individuals who have left their mark in various fields, from politics and sports to art and literature. The name's origins in nature and its association with resilience and adaptability have endured, making it a unique and intriguing choice for parents seeking a name with a rich cultural heritage.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Newt
People
Newt + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Newt 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
Newt: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Newt?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 311 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Newt 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 1,102,104 US residents.
Is Newt a common name?
We classify Newt as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 840 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Newt most popular?
The single biggest year for Newt was 1914, when 20 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Newt is about 34 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Newt in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 338 people with the name Newt, or 0.11 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #27,177 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 Newt 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 Newt?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Newt leans strongly male. 331 people counted with this name were male (96.8%), compared with 11 female bearers (3.2%). 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 Newt?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Newt is White at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Black (10.7%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Newt most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Newt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.8% (263 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 Newt in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Newt a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Newt 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 Newt still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Newt 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 Newt 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 common is the name Newt?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.