boy's name
Lester
LES-ter
- Origin English
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 132,516
Ireland
#303
1979 births
Lester means from Leicester, and the spelling is the honest one — Leicester has been pronounced LES-ter for centuries, so the surname simply wrote down what people had actually been saying to each other all along.
- Lester is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1918, when 3,265 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 32,188 babies in the United States is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Lester over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 1,451 |
| 1890s | 2,762 |
| 1900s | 4,465 |
| 1910s | 21,732 |
| 1920s | 26,842 |
| 1930s | 17,164 |
| 1940s | 17,230 |
| 1950s | 16,715 |
| 1960s | 9,835 |
| 1970s | 5,156 |
| 1980s | 3,587 |
| 1990s | 2,080 |
| 2000s | 1,373 |
| 2010s | 1,045 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 610 |
What Lester means
Lester means from Leicester, an English city. The place name joins a river or tribal name to the Latin castra, a Roman camp, so it records a fortified settlement.
Where Lester comes from
Lester is a surname from Leicester, recorded in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle as Ligeraceaster — the ceaster, from the Latin castra, a Roman camp, of the Ligore, a tribal group whose name may relate to the River Soar. The ceaster element gives the -chester, -cester and -caster in Manchester, Gloucester and Doncaster, all marking Roman sites. Leicester compressed in speech to two syllables centuries ago, and Lester is simply that pronunciation written down, which makes it more phonetically honest than the place it names.
Lester in use
Lester peaked in the United States in 1918, when 3,265 babies were registered, and our data marks it stable rather than falling. It charts in exactly one of the six markets we track, at 1636th in the United States on 103 births, across 132,516 lifetime births. Its 1918 peak places it with Elmer, Myrtle, Viola and Pearl in the same narrow band.
How popular is Lester?
In 2025, Lester was given to 103 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Lester is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Lester
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Lester also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Lester over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Lester
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Sibling names for Lester
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Lester — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Lester
What does the name Lester mean?
From Leicester — a Roman camp associated with a tribal group called the Ligore.
Why is Leicester pronounced LES-ter?
It compressed in speech centuries ago. Lester is simply that pronunciation written down.
What does -cester mean?
A Roman camp, from the Latin castra. It marks Roman sites in Gloucester, Manchester and Doncaster too.
How popular is Lester?
1636th in the United States, and our data marks it stable.
Is Lester a girl's or a boy's name?
Lester is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Lester?
Lester has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Lester?
Lester is usually shortened to Les.
Is Lester a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Lester currently ranks #1,636 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.