Ernest

maleStatistical record

What official birth registration shows about Ernest: which national registrars published it, in which years, and how its recorded position changed.

No researched meaning, origin or pronunciation yet — what that means.

Ernest: Recorded since 1964, it reached #167 in 1968, and it stood at #296 in 2024.

3registrars recorded it
61times a registrar ranked it
61years from first to last
#167highest recorded position
14groupings it qualifies for

Region

Rising

among boys in England and Wales · 1996–2024

View as table

England and Wales · Boys rank by year
Year	Rank
1996	#1337
1997	#1345
1998	#2074
1999	#1383
2000	#1425
2001	#1379
2002	#869
2003	#945
2004	#1160
2005	#919
2006	#722
2007	#664
2008	#649
2009	#610
2010	#574
2011	#557
2012	#382
2013	#440
2014	#397
2015	#313
2016	#320
2017	#283
2018	#326
2019	#290
2020	#301
2021	#305
2022	#270
2023	#283
2024	#296

VerifiedSource: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales.Confidence: high.

See all England and Wales names · Source: Office for National Statistics — Baby Names in England and Wales

What the data shows

RisingEngland and Wales · Boys

Recorded in official data among boys in Republic of Ireland in 31 of the 58 years from 1964 to 2021.

In 2024: #296 among boys in England and Wales, #727 among boys in Scotland.

Official data from 3 national registrars across 3 regions, 1964–2024 · Office for National Statistics. Data sources

Popularity journey

First recorded1964
First recorded at #181 among boys in Republic of Ireland in 1964 — the earliest year that source publishes this name, not necessarily the earliest it was used.
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Highest recorded1964–2021
Highest recorded position: #167 among boys in Republic of Ireland, in 1968 (recorded 1964–2021).
Republic of Ireland · Boys
Most recent2024
Most recently recorded at #296 among boys in England and Wales, in 2024.
England and Wales · Boys

Ernest appears in 2 of the published lists Namewise holds. The longest record is Republic of Ireland · Boys, which has ranked it in 31 years beginning in 1964, and has registered 144 births with the name.

Ernest across 2 official records

Each registrar publishes its own list, so these figures are read down a row, never across one. A position in one country is not comparable with a position in another, and Namewise never combines them into a single ranking. The birth counts do not compare across rows either, for a different reason: England and Wales registers roughly thirty times as many births a year as Northern Ireland, so a larger total says which registrar recorded it as much as how widely the name was given.

Ernest's first, highest and most recent recorded position in each official list, with the number of births each registrar registered with the name and its largest single year
Published list	First recorded	Highest	Most recent	Years recorded	Births registered	Most in one year
Republic of Ireland · Boys	#181 (1964)	#167 (1968)	#552 (2021)	31 of 58	144 (1964–2021)	11 (1968)
England and Wales · Boys	#1337 (1996)	#270 (2022)	#296 (2024)	29 of 29	2,317 (1996–2024)	182 (2017)

Ernest by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Births registered with the name in each decade of this one list, with the number of years the list covers in that decade. Bars are scaled on births a year, which is the figure that compares between decades — a decade the list only partly covers has a smaller total without being a quieter decade. Figures belong to this registrar alone and do not carry to another.

Births registered with Ernest in Republic of Ireland · Boys, by decade, with years covered and the average per year
Decade	Births registered	Years covered	A year
1960sbusiest	44	6 of 10	7
1970s	36	8 of 10	5
1980s	13	4 of 10	3
1990s	5	1 of 10	5
2000s	22	6 of 10	4
2010s	19	5 of 10	4
2020s	5	1 of 10	5

Across Republic of Ireland · Boys, the 1960s were its busiest decade — the 6 years of it this list covers, averaging 7 births a year.

See the names Republic of Irelandhas recorded the most births with →

Ernest appears in

Groupings this name qualifies for under their own stated rules, from the same official statistics shown above.

Popularity data

Official popularity data is available for 3 regions, from 1964 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #167 in Republic of Ireland in 1968.

Ernest's recorded popularity observations by year, region and administrative category, including rank, registered births, source confidence and when each region's data was last reviewed.
Year	Region	Category	Rank	Births registered	Confidence	Status
2024	England and Wales	male	#296	152	High	Verified
2023	England and Wales	male	#283	162	High	Verified
2022	England and Wales	male	#270	171	High	Verified
2021	England and Wales	male	#305	153	High	Verified
2020	England and Wales	male	#301	153	High	Verified
2019	England and Wales	male	#290	167	High	Verified
2018	England and Wales	male	#326	144	High	Verified
2017	England and Wales	male	#283	182	High	Verified
2016	England and Wales	male	#320	150	High	Verified
2015	England and Wales	male	#313	149	High	Verified
2014	England and Wales	male	#397	102	High	Verified
2013	England and Wales	male	#440	91	High	Verified
2012	England and Wales	male	#382	109	High	Verified
2011	England and Wales	male	#557	63	High	Verified
2010	England and Wales	male	#574	59	High	Verified
2009	England and Wales	male	#610	53	High	Verified
2008	England and Wales	male	#649	47	High	Verified
2007	England and Wales	male	#664	43	High	Verified
2006	England and Wales	male	#722	36	High	Verified
2005	England and Wales	male	#919	24	High	Verified
2004	England and Wales	male	#1160	16	High	Verified
2003	England and Wales	male	#945	20	High	Verified
2002	England and Wales	male	#869	20	High	Verified
2001	England and Wales	male	#1379	10	High	Verified
2000	England and Wales	male	#1425	9	High	Verified
1999	England and Wales	male	#1383	9	High	Verified
1998	England and Wales	male	#2074	5	High	Verified
1997	England and Wales	male	#1345	9	High	Verified
1996	England and Wales	male	#1337	9	High	Verified
2021	Republic of Ireland	male	#552	5	High	Verified
2017	Republic of Ireland	male	#610	4	High	Verified
2015	Republic of Ireland	male	#615	4	High	Verified
2013	Republic of Ireland	male	#534	5	High	Verified
2012	Republic of Ireland	male	#718	3	High	Verified
2010	Republic of Ireland	male	#720	3	High	Verified
2009	Republic of Ireland	male	#532	5	High	Verified
2008	Republic of Ireland	male	#529	5	High	Verified
2007	Republic of Ireland	male	#629	3	High	Verified
2006	Republic of Ireland	male	#596	3	High	Verified
2005	Republic of Ireland	male	#518	3	High	Verified
2002	Republic of Ireland	male	#451	3	High	Verified
1993	Republic of Ireland	male	#275	5	High	Verified
1988	Republic of Ireland	male	#319	3	High	Verified
1984	Republic of Ireland	male	#318	3	High	Verified
1982	Republic of Ireland	male	#286	4	High	Verified
1980	Republic of Ireland	male	#321	3	High	Verified
1978	Republic of Ireland	male	#326	3	High	Verified
1976	Republic of Ireland	male	#316	3	High	Verified
1975	Republic of Ireland	male	#265	5	High	Verified
1974	Republic of Ireland	male	#272	5	High	Verified
1973	Republic of Ireland	male	#320	3	High	Verified
1972	Republic of Ireland	male	#279	4	High	Verified
1971	Republic of Ireland	male	#242	6	High	Verified
1970	Republic of Ireland	male	#219	7	High	Verified
1969	Republic of Ireland	male	#216	7	High	Verified
1968	Republic of Ireland	male	#167	11	High	Verified
1967	Republic of Ireland	male	#265	3	High	Verified
1966	Republic of Ireland	male	#171	9	High	Verified
1965	Republic of Ireland	male	#181	7	High	Verified
1964	Republic of Ireland	male	#181	7	High	Verified
2024	Scotland	male	#727	3	High	Verified

England and Wales hub — collected by Office for National Statistics
Republic of Ireland hub — collected by CSO Ireland
Scotland hub — collected by National Records of Scotland

See methodology and data sources for how popularity data is collected and what "confidence" means.

What the record shows

Recorded by 3 registrars between 1964 and 2024, ranked in 48 years of that period.

Its highest recorded position is #167, first reached in 1968.

Its largest count from any one registrar is 182 births, registered in England and Wales in 2017.

Its record falls into 8 separate stretches, with a longest absence of 4 years.

A second registrar first ranked it in 1996, and 60 years separate the first registrar to record it from the last.

Every figure here is counted from the seven official registrars Namewise holds. A position is only ever a place within the list that published it, and a record that thins or stops is a fact about what registrars printed — never about how many children received the name.

Where to go next

Records with a comparable body of evidence, so the catalogue can be read outward from this one. Each group states the rule it was selected by.

Next in the catalogue

The records either side of this one alphabetically.

Erling · #43, 81y
Erna · #74, 43y
Ernie · #316, 27y
Ernst · #111, 49y

A comparable record

Records held by the same 3 registrars, over a similar number of ranked years, whose highest position is closest to this one. A similar body of evidence — never a claim that the names themselves are alike.

Arkadiusz · #168, 47y
Kealan · #168, 46y
Riona · #169, 49y
Carrie · #170, 49y

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Records whose earliest ranking in Namewise's registrar data also falls between 1960 and 1969.

Arturas · #167, 35y
Agata · #166, 56y
Arkadiusz · #168, 47y
Blathnaid · #168, 55y

Ernest was ranked #167 in Republic of Ireland · Boys in 1968. These are the names immediately either side of it on that published list — a fact about the registrar's own output, not a similarity judgement.

Ernest and the names beside it

Two names in the same published list are measured on the same scale, in the same year, by the same registrar — so these are positions that genuinely passed each other, not a similarity judgement. Drawn from the 2,573 names with a recorded popularity standing (common, familiar, uncommon), so a name outside that set could have passed Ernest without appearing here.

Ernest moved ahead of

Kim Compare
In 1998 they stood at #2074 and #1367 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1999 that had become #1383 and #2943.
Graeme Compare
In 1999 they stood at #1383 and #1281 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2000 that had become #1425 and #2501.
Geoffrey Compare
In 2004 they stood at #1160 and #1160 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2005 that had become #919 and #1851.
Shannon Compare
In 1998 they stood at #2074 and #1642 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1999 that had become #1383 and #2097.

Moved ahead of Ernest

Ollie Compare
In 1997 they stood at #1345 and #2022 in England and Wales · Boys; by 1998 that had become #2074 and #924.
Cooper Compare
In 2003 they stood at #945 and #1248 in England and Wales · Boys; by 2004 that had become #1160 and #731.
Callum Compare
In 2001 they stood at #275 and #339 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2002 that had become #451 and #60.
Cameron Compare
In 2001 they stood at #275 and #339 in Republic of Ireland · Boys; by 2002 that had become #451 and #101.

Moved the opposite way to Ernest

Isaac Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 while Isaac went from #232 to #87.
Leo Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 while Leo went from #101 to #29.
Oliver Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 while Oliver went from #68 to #25.
Theodore Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 while Theodore went from #214 to #72.

Moved the same way as Ernest

Adrian Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 and Adrian from #65 to #257.
Alan Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 and Alan from #29 to #186.
Andrew Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 and Andrew from #34 to #95.
Anthony Compare
Between 1964 and 2021 in Republic of Ireland · Boys, Ernest went from #181 to #552 and Anthony from #12 to #121.

What's not yet available

Meaning
Origin
Pronunciation
Nicknames and spelling variants

Absence from this list does not mean the name isn't genuinely meaningful or widely used — only that Namewise hasn't sourced and reviewed that content yet. Absence from a specific year or geography above does not prove zero use there either; official statistics only publish names above a minimum threshold.

Official popularity data is available for 3 regions, from 1964 to 2024. Highest recorded position: #167 in Republic of Ireland in 1968. Source data last verified 2026-07-21.

Ernest

Ernest at a glance

What the data shows

Popularity journey

Ernest across 2 official records

Ernest by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Ernest appears in

Popularity data

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Names published alongside Ernest

Ernest and the names beside it

Ernest moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Ernest

Moved the opposite way to Ernest

Moved the same way as Ernest

Ernest at a glance

Ernest across 2 official records

Ernest by decade in Republic of Ireland · Boys

Ernest appears in

What the record shows

Where to go next

Next in the catalogue

A comparable record

Also first recorded in the 1960s

Names published alongside Ernest

Ernest and the names beside it

Ernest moved ahead of

Moved ahead of Ernest

Moved the opposite way to Ernest

Moved the same way as Ernest