Names › Boy › E › Earnest
Boy name

Earnest

/ˈɝnɪst/ · 99% boys · 25 born in 2025

Earnest has been given to about 59,115 people in the United States since 1880. It was most common in 1926, which makes it a interwar name.

Meaning—
Origin—
Syllables2
Pronunciation/ˈɝnɪst/
Nicknames—
Living in the US≈ 27,336
Median age today73 years

Popularity, 1880–2025

Babies named Earnest per year · SSA, ONS, NRS, CSO, INSEE and SSB
18802025
United StatesEngland & Waleseach scaled to its own peak
  • Peak year1926 · 1,159
  • Born in 202525
  • All time59,115

How popular is Earnest?

Its best year was 1926, when 1,159 babies were given the name, ranking 147th. The typical living American called Earnest is about 73 years old today.

Names that sound like Earnest

Phonetic similarity, 0–1
  1. Ernest0.84
  2. Ernesto0.59
  3. Forrest0.58
  4. Forest0.58
  5. Earle0.58
  6. Everett0.46
  7. Emmett0.46
  8. Elbert0.46

Middle names for Earnest

Ranked by flow score
  1. Earnest Paul0.77
  2. Earnest John0.77
  3. Earnest Blake0.76
  4. Earnest Wade0.76
  5. Earnest Ross0.76
  6. Earnest Quinn0.76

Sibling names for Earnest

Same era, comparable use, no clash
  1. Otisbrother · 0.98
  2. Hughbrother · 0.97
  3. Fayesister · 0.96
  4. Rosiesister · 0.96
  5. Rolandbrother · 0.96
  6. Lenorasister · 0.95

Where Earnest is strongest

Share of 2025 births by state

    With a common surname

    Flow score against the most-used American surnames · try your own
    1. Earnest Anderson0.77
    2. Earnest White0.72
    3. Earnest Nguyen0.72
    4. Earnest Moore0.72
    5. Earnest Hill0.72
    6. Earnest Hall0.72

    How to read these numbers

    Every score on this page is explained
    1. Phonetic similarity0–1
    2. Middle-name flow0–1
    3. Sibling fit0–1
    4. Living population estimatemethod
    5. PronunciationCMU dictionary

    Sources for Earnest

    Every figure on this page is public record
    1. United States1880–2025
    2. England & Wales1996–2025
    3. PronunciationCMU dictionary

    Source: US Social Security Administration, national and state name files, 2025 release, and the Office for National Statistics for England and Wales. Etymology researched and written by our editors. Living-population and median-age figures are our own estimates, described in the methodology.