Lester

Meaning: Its source is Leicester, an English name meaning "Ligora's fort."

Languages: This boy's name is used in English.

Nicknames: Les

Source Forms: Leicester

Popularity: The name Lester ranked 194th in popularity for males of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

This name is highly rated in the 1990 U.S. Census popularity survey of all ages, but after 1960 does not appear in the state data listing the most popular baby names.

Narrative: Some authorities believe this name is a variation of the occupational surname Lister, based on a Middle English term for a dyer of fabrics.

Arts and Music

Lester Flatt (born 1914, died 1979)
American bluegrass musician.
- Country Music Hall of Fame (see list of Country Music Hall of Fame)
Lester Polfus II
- Les Paul (see list of Nicknames of Musicians)
Lester ''Prez'' Young (born 1909, died 1959)
American jazz musician.
- Tenor sax player and composer (see list of Readers' Picks for the Jazz Hall of Fame)

Leadership

Lester B. Pearson (born 1897, died 1972)
Canadian statesman and diplomat who mediated the 1956 Suez crisis.
- Prime minister of Canada, 1963-68 (see list of Miscellaneous Political Leaders)
- 1957 Nobel Prize winner for Peace (see list of Nobel Peace Prize Winners)

Stage and Screen

Lester Alvin ''Smiley'' Burnette (born 1911, died 1967)
American actor, best known as Gene Autry's sidekick.
- Star on Hollywood Walk of Fame for Motion Picture (see list of Movie Personalities with Stars in the Hollywood Walk of Fame)
Lester
Fictional character.
- Portrayed by Alan Alda (see list of Characters in the film Crimes and Misdemeanors)
Lester Townsend
Fictional character.
- Played by Philip Ober (see list of Character from Alfred Hitchcock's North by Northwest)

The Literary World

Dr. Lester Albertson
Fictional character.
- Assisted Dr. Pritchard in Stephen King''s novel The Dark Half (see list of Characters in The Dark Half)
Lester Markel
- 1951 recipient of a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation (see list of Winners of a Pulitzer Prize Special Citation)


Leicester
Lastarr
Laurie

Teasing Nicknames:

Fester
Lester the Molester
Les Nessman
Nester
Lester the Lobster
Les is more

Meaning: Its source is Leicester, an English name meaning "Ligora's fort."

Popularity: The name Lester ranked 4228th in popularity for females of all ages in a sample of the 1990 US Census.

Though this name appears on the 1990 U.S. Census lists, it is used by only a small percentage of the general population.

This name is usually reserved for boys. In part, it could owe its position on the US Census popularity list to incorrectly filled-out census forms.

Narrative: Some authorities believe this name is a variation of the occupational surname Lister, based on the Middle English term for a dyer of fabrics.

The Ligora referred to in the given meaning, incidentally, is an Old English name whose meaning has been lost.

None