Chester
An English surname from the city of Chester, whose name comes from the Latin castra, meaning military camp. It later moved into use as a first name.
Chester in 2025
Chester was given to 107 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 3,382nd most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 30,985 babies born.
The history of Chester
Chester reached its highest point in 1920, when 3,726 babies were given the name, ranking 131st that year. Its best-ever ranking was 125th, in 1915.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 122,302 babies have been named Chester. Half of them were born before 1929, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Silent Generation.
Chester by decade
| Decade | Babies named Chester | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 2,699 | 144 |
| 1890s | 3,039 | 183 |
| 1900s | 3,830 | 204 |
| 1910s | 23,673 | 125 |
| 1920s | 28,675 | 131 |
| 1930s | 14,527 | 236 |
| 1940s | 15,404 | 293 |
| 1950s | 12,858 | 368 |
| 1960s | 6,807 | 560 |
| 1970s | 4,150 | 771 |
| 1980s | 2,801 | 966 |
| 1990s | 1,549 | 1,510 |
| 2000s | 884 | 2,822 |
| 2010s | 840 | 3,594 |
| 2020s | 566 | 3,382 |
Where Chester is heading
Chester has risen 9% over the past decade, from 98 babies in 2015 to 107 in 2025.
That is less than 5% of its 1920 peak — Chester is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Chester
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Chester.