Ernest
Featured in baby name books
Ernest is an Old German name meaning “serious” or “earnest,” sometimes read as “serious in battle.” Ernest sounds mild, recalling Wilde’s The Importance of Being Earnest, but its popularity has faded while the Spanish Ernesto thrives. Nobel Prize-winning writer Ernest Hemingway, famous for his adventurous life and narrow escapes, is its best-known bearer, along with actor Ernest Borgnine.
Sources: 10,000 Baby Names, Baby Names Made Easy, The Best Baby Names for Boys, Baby Names Your Child Can Live With, The Everything Baby Names Book, Numerology for Baby Names, Baby Names (Laura Emerson), 1,107 Baby Names That Stand the Test of Time, Badass Baby Names
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Usage of Ernest in different languages / cultures
The list below was created by gathering names from various sources for different languages, and then matching Ernest against each list of names.
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Albanian
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Arabic
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Armenian
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Bengali
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Bulgarian
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Catalan
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Chinese
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Cornish
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Croatian
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Czech
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Danish
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Dothraki
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Dutch
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English
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Estonian
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Filipino
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Finnish
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French
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Georgian
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German
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Greek
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Hawaiian
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Hebrew
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Hindi
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Hungarian
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Icelandic
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Indonesian
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Irish
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Italian
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Japanese
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Khmer
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Klingon
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Korean
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Latin
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Latvian
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Lithuanian
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Macedonian
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Norwegian
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Persian
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Polish
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Portuguese
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Romanian
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Russian
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Scottish
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Serbian
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Slovak
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Slovenian
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Spanish
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Swahili
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Swedish
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Telugu
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Thai
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Turkish
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Ukrainian
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Vietnamese
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Welsh
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Yiddish
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Yoruba
Note: In some cases it is possible for the check mark to be missing even if Ernest is used in a particular country, as almost no source name list has 100% coverage.
Ernest in official name statistics
United States
In 2025, 213 boys were named Ernest, making it the #1038 boys' name in the US. Since 1880, 302,499 boys have been named Ernest, with the most (5,697) in 1921. It is most common, relative to births, in Nebraska, Washington and Utah.
Source: Social Security Administration baby name data, 1880–2025. Names given to fewer than 5 babies in a year are not listed.
Other countries
Counts are babies born that year, or living people for "all ages" rows, as published by each country's statistics office or population register.
Ernest in other languages
- Ernesto Italian, Portuguese, Spanish
- Ernes Dutch, German
- Erneste Dutch, French
- Ernst Dutch, German
- Arnošt Czech
- Ernestas Lithuanian
- Ernesti Finnish
- Ernests Latvian
- Erneszt Hungarian
- Ernő Hungarian
Source: Wikidata (CC0).
Storms named Ernest
Tropical storms, hurricanes, typhoons and cyclones that have been named Ernest, newest first.
| Storm | Year | Ocean | Peak wind |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cyclone Ernest (Category 3) | 2005 | South Indian Ocean | 185 km/h |
Source: IBTrACS, NOAA National Centers for Environmental Information. Peak wind is the highest sustained wind recorded for the storm.
Towns named Ernest
There are 8 towns and villages with Ernest in their name, in 5 countries.
🇺🇸 United States 4🇦🇺 Australia 1🇬🇧 United Kingdom 1🇱🇰 Sri Lanka 1🇲🇺 Mauritius 1
| Name | Where | Population | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Milton Ernest | England, 🇬🇧 United Kingdom | 761 | Map |
| Ernest | Pennsylvania, 🇺🇸 United States | 448 | Map |
| Ernest | Georgia, 🇺🇸 United States | – | Map |
| Ernest | Pennsylvania, 🇺🇸 United States | – | Map |
| Ernest Florent | Flacq, 🇲🇺 Mauritius | – | Map |
| Ernest Junction | Queensland, 🇦🇺 Australia | – | Map |
| Ernest Hansen Estate | Florida, 🇺🇸 United States | – | Map |
| Ernest Valley Watta | Central Province, 🇱🇰 Sri Lanka | – | Map |
Source: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Maps: OpenStreetMap.
Lakes named Ernest
There are 27 lakes and reservoirs with Ernest in their name, in 2 countries.
🇨🇦 Canada 22🇺🇸 United States 5
| Name | Where | |
|---|---|---|
| Ernest Lake | Ontario, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Ernest Lake | Alberta, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Ernest Lake | British Columbia, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Ernest Lake | Minnesota, 🇺🇸 United States | Map |
| Ernest Lake | Wyoming, 🇺🇸 United States | Map |
| Ernest Lakes | Northwest Territories, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Lac Ernest | Quebec, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Lac Ernest | Quebec, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Lac Ernest | Quebec, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
| Lac Ernest | Quebec, 🇨🇦 Canada | Map |
Source: GeoNames (CC BY 4.0). Maps: OpenStreetMap.
Ernest songs
18 songs and musical works on Wikidata have Ernest in their title. The best known:
- 7 [Seven] poems by Ernest Thiel – Hugo Alfvén
- 7 [Sju] dikter af Ernest Thiel – Hugo Alfvén
- Du är stilla ro (ur 7 dikter av Ernest Thiel) – Hugo Alfvén (1908)
- ERNEST
- El petit Ernest – Ernest Llenas i Tort
- Ernest i Consol – Josep Cassú i Serra
- Kring ditt rika och vågiga hår och andra dikter av Ernest Thiel – Hugo Alfvén
- Per Ernest Lluch – Joaquim Soms i Janer
- Per tu, Ernest – Maria Teresa Monclús i Marquès
- Perry Ernest – Ras Kimono (2008)
Song data: Wikidata (CC0), ordered by how widely each song is covered on Wikipedia.
Celebrities named Ernest
Based on celebrities listed on Wikipedia, filtered to only those with the first name Ernest.
Ernest Asante
Ernest Borgnine
Ernest Fooks
Ernest Lee Thomas
See more...
Fictional characters named Ernest
Characters from films and TV series, from Wikidata, ordered by how widely they are covered on Wikipedia.
Character data: Wikidata (CC0). Images: Wikimedia Commons; click an image for its author and licence.
Ernest as a pet name
FurryName has found 44 dogs named Ernest in public pet registers, making it the #3,036 dog name there. Most of them are registered in Seattle (2), Victoria (1), Laval (1). Ernest as a dog name →
FurryName has found 6 cats named Ernest in public pet registers, making it the #1,192 cat name there. Most of them are registered in Laval (2), Toronto (2), Vancouver (1). Ernest as a cat name →
Ernest products
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