# Lester (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/lester/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | not recorded |
| Meaning | “exterior (part of a property)” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈlɛstɚ/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 132,047 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 130,688 / 1,359 (1% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 145, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

* As an English surname, from the placename Leicester. * Also as an English surname of Norman origin, from Lestre in Normandy, from Old French Lestra, from Medieval Latin Laxtra, perhaps from extera (“exterior (part of a property)”). * As an English and Scottish surname, variant of Lister. * Also as an English surname, variant of Laster. * As a Scottish and Irish surname, shortened from McLester.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1964 | 13 | 3,801 |
| 1965 | 8 | 5,088 |
| 1966 | 8 | 5,083 |
| 1967 | 8 | 5,234 |
| 1969 | 9 | 5,274 |
| 1970 | 9 | 5,624 |
| 1972 | 7 | 6,937 |
| 1973 | 5 | 9,150 |
| 1976 | 6 | 8,728 |
| 1977 | 7 | 8,013 |
| 1978 | 5 | 10,672 |
| 1979 | 7 | 8,558 |
| 1980 | 6 | 9,759 |
| 1984 | 5 | 11,383 |
| 1985 | 6 | 10,045 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 102 | 1,556 |
| 2012 | 104 | 1,537 |
| 2013 | 125 | 1,359 |
| 2014 | 106 | 1,520 |
| 2015 | 104 | 1,561 |
| 2016 | 105 | 1,570 |
| 2017 | 88 | 1,760 |
| 2018 | 93 | 1,695 |
| 2019 | 100 | 1,639 |
| 2020 | 109 | 1,533 |
| 2021 | 109 | 1,588 |
| 2022 | 96 | 1,744 |
| 2023 | 82 | 1,921 |
| 2024 | 111 | 1,568 |
| 2025 | 103 | 1,641 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2006 | 7 | 2,282 |
| 2007 | 6 | 2,741 |
| 2008 | 6 | 2,775 |
| 2009 | 5 | 3,227 |
| 2010 | 9 | 2,199 |
| 2011 | 6 | 2,892 |
| 2012 | 9 | 2,270 |
| 2013 | 4 | 3,822 |
| 2014 | 3 | 4,632 |
| 2015 | 3 | 4,747 |
| 2016 | 6 | 3,079 |
| 2018 | 8 | 2,445 |
| 2020 | 6 | 2,960 |
| 2021 | 4 | 3,990 |
| 2022 | 5 | 3,449 |

## People named Lester

- Lester B. Pearson, 14th Prime Minister of Canada, from 1963 to 1968 (1897–1972)
- Lester Young, American jazz saxophonist (1909–1959)
- Lester del Rey, American science fiction author (1915–1993)
- Lester Germer, American physicist (1896–1971)
- Lester Bangs, American music critic and journalist
- Lester Russell Brown, American environmental analyst
- Lester Allan Pelton, American mechanical engineer (1829–1908)
- Lester Bowie, American jazz trumpet player and composer (1941-1999)
- Lester Frank Ward, American sociologist and paleontologist (1841-1913)
- Lester Morgan, Costa Rican footballer (1976-2002)
- Lester Speight, American football player, professional wrestler actor
- Lester Carney, American sprinter

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.