Cornelio
Masculine · “horn”
Rome's aristocracy was named after produce. Cicero is a chickpea, Fabius a bean, Lentulus a lentil, Piso a pea. Cornelius is the horn, which is at least not a vegetable, but it belongs to the same habit: the greatest families in the republic carried names that started as somebody's blunt physical joke.
How old is the name Cornelio?
Cornelio first appears in US birth records in 1911 — 114 years ago. The typical Cornelio alive today was born around 1977, making them about 48 years old. About 1,200 people named Cornelio are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Cornelio most popular?
Cornelio peaked in 1947, reaching #1425 nationally. Today it ranks #6446, 5,021 places below that high. See the whole 1947 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From cornu to Cornelio
The story of Cornelio
The gens Cornelia was one of the greatest patrician houses of Rome, producing Scipio Africanus and Sulla among many others, and the name outlived the republic by being taken up by Christians: Cornelius the centurion in Acts is the first Gentile convert, baptized by Peter, and a third-century pope of the name was martyred. Spanish and Italian took it as Cornelio, and the Netherlands took it as Cornelis, where it became one of the commonest Dutch men's names. Cornelio entered United States records with Mexican and Italian families and reached its best year in 1947.
Meaningscholars disagree
horn
Latin Cornelius is a gens name generally connected to cornu, a horn, though what the horn referred to is not recovered; it may have described a physical feature, a helmet, or an object the family was associated with. Roman clan names very often began as descriptive bynames of this kind. The connection to cornu is the standard reading and is not certain.
How the name formed
- cornu
- Cornelius
- Cornelio
Related forms: Cornelio · Cornelio · Cornelis · Cornelio · Korneliusz
Pronouncing Cornelio
kor-NEH-lee-oh
Four syllables with the stress on the second. English speakers usually say kor-NEEL-yoh, compressing the last two syllables, which is the ordinary adaptation.
Nicknames for Cornelio
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1911
- Most boys named
- 199529 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1425reached in 1947
- Change vs 2023
- +116.7%13 in 2025, from 6
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Cornelio in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Cornelio in Spanish — same name
- Cornelio in Italian — same name
- Cornelis in Dutch — same name
- Cornelio in Portuguese — same name
- Korneliusz in Polish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas.
Cornelios among us
people named Cornelio are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 131,390 born in 2025 was named Cornelio
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Hassel test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Cornelio's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Hassel climbed just as high around 1925, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Hassel's path sketches the road Cornelio is walking now.
Cornelio sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Cornelio beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Cornelio in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One of the great Roman clan names, with a documented biblical bearer as well.
- Recognized across Spanish, Italian, Portuguese and Dutch naming.
- Nelio and Kees are two short forms from two completely different traditions.
- Four syllables will be shortened in American use.
- Cornelius is the English standard and will be written instead.
- It reads as an older generation's name in Latin America and Italy.
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What they receive
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Cornelio
Masculine · #6446 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Cornelios are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,200 people named Cornelio are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Cornelio in 2025?
- Cornelio ranks #6446 among US boy names in 2025, with 13 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Cornelio?
- About 1 in every 131,390 US boys born in 2025 was named Cornelio — 13 in all.
- Will my child share the name Cornelio with classmates?
- Cornelio will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Cornelio
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Rollie#6446 · Billie#6446 · Worth#6446 · Blas#6446 · Starling#6446 · Alvis#6446 · Elwyn#6446 · Rollin#6446
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Cornelio? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Cornelio and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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