Name meaning & stats
Nell
Nell means “light (debated)”. 6,068 US babies since 1940, peak 1940.
What it means
“light (debated)”
Pet form of Eleanor
In US birth records
Peak year: 1940
6,068 US babies were named Nell between 1940 and 2025.
Careers
Not enough notable people named Nell (or its spelling family) to say anything reliable yet. That's a gap in the data, not the name.
Spelling family
The most common spelling: 85% of the family
- Nell 85%
- Nelle 10%
- Nelliel 2%
- Neleh 2%
- Nel 2%
Names that sound the same, grouped by Heyotag. Share of US babies since 1940.
Name twins (peaked around 1940)