Cosette
Feminine · “little thing”
Cosette is a nickname a child was given in Les Misérables, and Hugo says outright that it was made up — chosette, little thing, softened into a name.
How old is the name Cosette?
Cosette first appears in US birth records in 1912 — 113 years ago. The typical Cosette alive today was born around 2012, making them about 13 years old. About 2,900 people named Cosette are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Cosette most popular?
Cosette peaked in 2015, reaching #1554 nationally. Today it ranks #1777, 223 places below that high. See the whole 2015 chart.
Cosette appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From chose to Cosette
The story of Cosette
Les Misérables, published in 1862, gives Cosette to a child raised in servitude and adopted by Jean Valjean; the novel says the name was made from Euphrasie, her real one. The 1980 musical carried it worldwide. The name appears in the American registers rising through the 2010s and is in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
little thing
Hugo says in the novel that Cosette was an invention, and it is generally read as a diminutive of chose, 'thing' — so 'little thing', which is what the Thénardiers thought of her. A second route treats it as a diminutive of Nicolette or Colette. The novel's own account is the better documented.
How the name formed
- chose
- Cosette
Related forms: Cosette · Cozette · Colette
Pronouncing Cosette
koh-ZET
Two syllables, stress on the second. French says it the same way with a softer final t.
Nicknames for Cosette
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
- 1912
- Most girls named
- 2016120 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1554reached in 2015
- Change vs 2023
- +6.6%113 in 2025, from 106
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.
Cosette in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Cosette in French — same name
- Cozette in English — spelling variant
- Colette in French — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Utah, Arizona.
Cosettes among us
people named Cosette are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 14,224 born in 2025 was named Cosette
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Cosette
- #1777
- Cosette on the 2025 chart
- #811
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Cosette went to 113 girls in 2025, but Cozette is the same name said out loud. Together the 2 spellings went to 149, which makes it the 811th most-given girls’ name of the year — 966 places above the chart.
- Cosette113
- Cozette36
About 1 girl in 10,787 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 14,224 for Cosette itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Aryn test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Cosette's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Aryn climbed just as high around 1993, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Aryn's path sketches the road Cosette is walking now.
Cosette 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
Where Cosette is headed
Cosette should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Cosette beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Cosette in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One of the major novels of the nineteenth century stands behind it.
- The origin is explained in the book itself, which very few names can claim.
- The end stress gives it a strong rhythm against a front-stressed surname.
- The 'little thing' meaning was intended dismissively in the novel.
- The association with one book and musical is total.
- Colette is a genuine French name and is easily confused with it.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Cosette to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Cosette? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Cosette
Feminine · #1777 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Cosettes are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,900 people named Cosette are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Cosette?
- Cosette is the most-used spelling in US records — 113 of the 149 babies given the name in 2025. The others recorded are Cozette.
- How popular is the name Cosette in 2025?
- Cosette ranks #1777 among US girl names in 2025, with 113 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Cosette?
- About 1 in every 14,224 US girls born in 2025 was named Cosette — 113 in all.
- Will my child share the name Cosette with classmates?
- Cosette will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Cosette
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Tess#1777 · Ronnie#1777 · Arizbeth#1777 · Jalayah#1777 · Katarina#1777 · Adore#1777 · Yesly#1777 · Harlowe#1777
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Cosette? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Cosette and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle