Ezell
Feminine
Ezell is given to both — 411 girls and 3,243 boys since 1880. See Ezell as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Ezell looks like a shortening of Ezekiel and cannot be shown to be one. It appears in American records as a surname first, in the South, and every attempt to tie it to the prophet's name runs into the same problem: the sounds are close, and nothing else is.
How old is the name Ezell?
Ezell first appears in US birth records in 1908 — 117 years ago. The typical Ezell alive today was born around 1925, making them about 100 years old. Fewer than a hundred people named Ezell are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
When was the name Ezell most popular?
Ezell peaked in 1912, reaching #1620 nationally. See the whole 1912 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Ezell
There is a family of American names sharing this ending and very little else: Odell from an English village, Idell from a classical name with an ending added, Ezell from somewhere unknown. They cluster in the same regions and the same decades, they were given to boys and girls alike, and they behave as a group in the record even though their origins have nothing in common. That is worth knowing because it explains the shape rather than the source: a name in this set was chosen partly because it sounded like the others, and asking what it means individually may be the wrong question.
Meaningnot established
Not established
No source can be given honestly. The resemblance to Ezekiel is the explanation usually offered and it has no documentary support; the surname may equally descend from an English place name or from an unrelated personal name.
Pronouncing Ezell
ee-ZEL
Two syllables with the weight at the back. Front-weighted EE-zel is also heard, particularly where the name is used as a surname.
Nicknames for Ezell
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
- 1908
- Most girls named
- 192722 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1620reached in 1912
- Change vs 1953
- −37.5%5 in 1954, from 8
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.
Ezells among us
Fewer than a hundred people named Ezell are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
Questions parents actually ask
Fashion outlook
Ezell sits outside the current charts, and that is its own kind of answer: naming cycles can only date the names they carried up. A name this rare has no decade stamped on it — it cannot go out of fashion, because it was never in.
Based on 146 years of naming cycles. How we read them
The trade-off
- Two syllables, five letters, and no sound an English speaker has to learn.
- It works as a surname and as a first name, which suits families that use both.
- Zell is a ready short form with a life of its own.
- There is no established meaning, and the one usually offered is a guess.
- The spelling is recorded for girls as well as boys in the United States.
- It reads clearly as a name of the turn of the twentieth century.
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Ezell
Feminine
Frequently asked
- How many Ezells are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. Fewer than a hundred people named Ezell are estimated to be alive in the US today — a true one-of-a-kind name.
- How popular is the name Ezell in 2025?
- Ezell is rarely given in the US today — it does not rank in the top 2000 girl names.
- Will my child share the name Ezell with classmates?
- Ezell will almost certainly be the only one in school.
More E names
The most-given names starting with E, all years combined.
Elizabeth#17 · Emily#34 · Emma#3 · Evelyn#8 · Ella#29 · Eleanor#12 · Erin#833 · Edna#2458
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Ezell? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Ezell and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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