Nelly

Meaning: The other Aenor
Origin: Variant of Nellie · From Latin alia; the earlier root has the sense riches and fame (from Old Provencal/Latin, ultimately Germanic; Arabic light also suggested)

Girl's name · #1294 in the US (2025) · 2020s wave

Popularity over time

Nelly reached its best rank, #625, in 1882 and ranked #1294 in 2025. Roughly 7,800 girls have been named Nelly since 1882.

Across the states

See where Nelly is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 16 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Nelly ranks in other countries and regions.

#194 in Norway (2025) · #221 in Sweden (2025) · #262 in Poland (2025) · #354 in England & Wales (2025) · #497 in Ecuador (2025) · #606 in Austria (2025) · #688 in Ireland (2025) · #700 in Switzerland (2025) · #735 in Scotland (2025) · #746 in France (2025) · #1,445 in Belgium (2025) · #684 in Canada (2024).

Famous Nellys

Nelly Sachs — Jewish German poet and playwright (1891–1970)
Nelly Furtado — Portuguese-Canadian singer and songwriter
Nelly Ciobanu — Moldovan singer
Nelly Korda — American golfer
Nelly Kaplan — French filmmaker and writer (1931–2020)

In stories & tradition

Nelly Dean — Wuthering Heights (book)
Nelly Rapp — Nelly Rapp (book series)
Nelly — Adelson e Salvini (Italian opera)

What Nellys become

Among 607 notable people named Nelly:

Entertainers appear 1.8× more often than among typical names — e.g. Nelly Furtado, Portuguese-Canadian singer and songwriter.

Spellings & nicknames

Together with its spelling variant Nellie (#533), Nelly would rank around #423 with about 740 births last year — the newborns split about 77/23 between Nellie and Nelly.

Similar names: Nellie · Alba · Nella · Milly · Adela · Aleyah

Browse more girl names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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