Hester
Latin form of Esther, the biblical queen of Persia; the name is linked to Persian for star and to the goddess Ishtar.
Hester in 2025
Hester was given to 5 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 26,165th most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 663,069 babies born.
The history of Hester
Hester reached its highest point in 1918, when 407 babies were given the name, ranking 583rd that year. Its best-ever ranking was 310th, in 1893.
Across the 146 years of records since 1880, 14,764 babies have been named Hester. Half of them were born before 1920, which places the name's centre of gravity with the Greatest Generation.
Hester by decade
| Decade | Babies named Hester | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 796 | 352 |
| 1890s | 1,416 | 310 |
| 1900s | 1,700 | 332 |
| 1910s | 3,249 | 401 |
| 1920s | 3,180 | 610 |
| 1930s | 1,631 | 808 |
| 1940s | 1,184 | 1,028 |
| 1950s | 776 | 1,494 |
| 1960s | 348 | 2,679 |
| 1970s | 244 | 3,403 |
| 1980s | 154 | 5,254 |
| 1990s | 49 | 10,768 |
| 2000s | 15 | 24,941 |
| 2010s | 12 | 21,365 |
| 2020s | 10 | 26,165 |
Where Hester is heading
Hester was not in use ten years ago, so there is no decade-long trend to compare against yet.
That is less than 5% of its 1918 peak — Hester is now a rare name in the United States.
Names like Hester
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Hester.