Ernest

“Vigor, strife; serious” — Germanic origin

Boy's name · #1038 in the US (2025) · Vintage

Ernest has appeared in US records since 1880 — best rank #21 (1885) · 302,499 babies named Ernest all-time · 1 in 8,300 boys born in 2025.

Around the world: about 1 in 1,100 boys in Belgium (2025) · about 1 in 1,200 boys in Poland (2025) · about 1 in 1,500 boys in England & Wales (2025).

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 21 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Famous Ernests

Ernest Hemingway — American author and journalist (1899–1961)
Ernest Rutherford — New Zealand physicist (1871–1937)
Ernest Orlando Lawrence — American nuclear physicist (1901–1958)
Ernest Renan — French philosopher and writer (1823–1892)
Ernest Thomas Sinton Walton — Irish physicist and Nobel laureate (1903-1995)

Among 4,212 notable people named Ernest:

Lawyers & judges appear 1.7× more often than among typical names — e.g. Ernest Belfort Bax, British barrister and journalist (1854–1926).

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