Nelson

English
"son of Neil"

Nelson Origin and Meaning

The name Nelson is a boy's name of English origin meaning "son of Neil".

Nelson is a rather stiff and dated surname name that is sometimes used to honor distinguished South African activist Nelson Mandela, as Celine Dion did for one of her twin boys. Other notable associations are with the British Admiral Lord Horatio Nelson, New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller, novelist Nelson Algren and movie operetta star Nelson Eddy. It was also the given name of "Rabbit" Angstrom, protagonist of John Updike's series of novels.

Nelson's highest popularity was in the 1930s and forties, when it was in the Top 200.

# 797 in the US

Nelson Rank in US Top 1000

# 1540 on Nameberry

Nelson Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Nelson Popularity

Famous People Named Nelson

  • Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela
    1st President of South Africa
  • Nelson Aldrich Rockefeller
    41st Vice President of the United States
  • Nelson Piquet
    Brazilian racing driver
  • Nelson Angelo Piquet
    Brazilian racing driver
  • Nelson Wilmarch Aldrich
    U.S. Senator from Rhode Island
  • Nelson Antonio Haedo Valdez
    Paraguayan footballer
  • Nelson Algren
    American novelist
  • Nelson Ascencio
    American actor/comedian
  • Nelson S. Bond
    American writer
  • Nelson Dawson
    English artist
  • Nelson DeCastro
    American comic book artist
  • Nelson Richard DeMille
    American author
  • Nelson Ackerman Eddy
    American singer
  • Nelson Freire
    Brazilian pianist
  • Nelson George
    American writer/filmmaker
  • Nelson Illingworth
    Australian sculptor
  • Nelson Ned
    Brazilian singer
  • Nelson Doubleday Jr.
    American businessman
  • Nelson Goodman
    American philosopher
  • Nelson Franklin
    American actor
  • Nelson Bunker Hunt
    American businessman
  • Nelson A. Miles
    American soldier
  • Nelson Poynter
    American newspaper publisher
  • Nelson Smock Riddle
    American bandleader
  • Nelson Rodrigues
    Brazilian playwright
  • Nelson Briles
    American baseball pitcher
  • Nelson Carmichael
    American skier
  • Nelson Peltz
    American businessman and father of actress Nicola Peltz
  • Nelson Oduber
    prime minister of Aruba
  • Nelson Dewey
    American politician
  • Baby Face Nelson (original name Lester Joseph Gillis)
    diminutive American gangster
  • Horatio Nelson (Lord Nelson)
    British admiral
  • Prince Rogers Nelson
    American musician
  • Nelson Angelil (b. 2010)
    son of French Canadian singer Celine Dion
  • Nelson Cabral Semedo
    Portuguese professional footballer

Nelson in Pop Culture

  • Nelson Van Alden
    character on TV's "Boardwalk Empire"
  • Nelson Biederman IV
    character in film "Let's Go to Prison"
  • Nelson
    from the movie "Flatliners"
  • Nelson Minkler
    from TV series "Even Stevens"
  • Nelson Tibideaux
    from TV series "The Cosby Show"
  • Nelson Muntz
    bully that says "Ha,ha!" in "The Simpsons"
  • Nelson
    DJ's wealthy boyfriend on Full House
  • Ferdinand "Foggy" Nelson
    character in Marvel's "Daredevil"
  • Nelson Rose
    female character on TV's "SMILF"
  • Nelson
    city in New Zealand