Rachel
Hebrew Rachel, “ewe.”
Popularity, 1880–2025
Jacob's beloved wife in Genesis; already a classic, it got a 1990s boost from Friends' Rachel Green.
Rachel appears in the national records from the very first year, 1880. It has ranked among the top 100 names for American girls in every year from 1968 to 2010. Its biggest year was 1985, when 16,360 newborn girls received the name, ranking it No. 13 nationally. Its best ranking came in 1996, at No. 9. In 2025 it ranked No. 250 for girls. All told, 575,748 Americans have been given the name since 1880.
Related names
Other spellings on record: Rachelle (33,970), Rachell (3,976), Rachele (3,316), Raechel (2,276), Raychel (1,520), Rachal (1,323) (total births since 1880)
Other names that share a story: Joseph, Rachael
Explore Rachel interactively →By the decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 2,128 | No. 109 |
| 1890s | 3,279 | No. 122 |
| 1900s | 3,974 | No. 135 |
| 1910s | 10,482 | No. 145 |
| 1920s | 14,199 | No. 152 |
| 1930s | 12,268 | No. 156 |
| 1940s | 13,409 | No. 159 |
| 1950s | 16,775 | No. 175 |
| 1960s | 26,795 | No. 69 |
| 1970s | 77,749 | No. 23 |
| 1980s | 146,675 | No. 13 |
| 1990s | 149,167 | No. 9 |
| 2000s | 68,401 | No. 21 |
| 2010s | 21,076 | No. 99 |
| 2020s | 7,580 | No. 226 |
Births and rank shown for girls, the sex more often given the name. The Social Security Administration omits name–year combinations with fewer than five births.
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Data: U.S. Social Security Administration national baby-name file, 1880–2025.