Given name & surname
Priest
Priest is a surname from Middle English. It is used in English and French.
Meaning & origin
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1971. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Priest through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 561
- 561 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2019
- 50 babies
- 2025
- 24
- #4,352 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +20%
- Rising
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 24 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 4,352 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 19.8% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 50 in 2019. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 497 as a first name in 2020; 13,964 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Priest’s family of names
In English usage, Priest as a surname continues an earlier form in PREST.
The ring: across languages.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Priest, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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