Unisex name ★ peaked 2012

Jael

Meaning From the name of a minor biblical character, Hebrew יעל Gender Unisex · 57% girls Rank 2025 #1,393 Trend → Stable

From the name of a minor biblical character, Hebrew יעל.

Rank 2025
#1,393
among girls · ↑75 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
304
named Jael · +6% vs 2024
How common
1 in 10,237
girls born in 2025
Peak year
2012
409 babies
All-time total
7,948
#2,731 all-time among girls
First recorded
1957
in Social Security records

Jael popularity over time

7,948 babies have been named Jael since 1957, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.040.080.110.1518801900192019401960198020002020GirlsBoys
GirlsBoys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Girls Boys Total Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – – – –
1890s – – – – – –
1900s – – – – – –
1910s – – – – – –
1920s – – – – – –
1930s – – – – – –
1940s – – – – – –
1950s 14 – 14 1 – #3,204
1960s 25 – 25 3 +79% #4,600
1970s 156 5 161 16 +544% #2,547
1980s 279 52 331 33 +106% #2,800
1990s 510 141 651 65 +97% #2,026
2000s 1,106 913 2,019 202 +210% #1,383
2010s 1,630 1,416 3,046 305 +51% #1,197
2020s (to 2025) 841 860 1,701 284 -7% #1,393

Where Jael is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 girls (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 girls Implied rank
2026 157 0.10 outside top 500
2027 157 0.10 outside top 500
2028 157 0.10 outside top 500
2029 157 0.10 outside top 500
2030 157 0.10 outside top 500

Where Jael is most popular

Girls named Jael per 1,000 girls born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.088 per 1,000. Strongest in Florida, New Jersey, and Maryland.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are girls named Jael born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Girls 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Florida 82 0.192 +118%
New Jersey 30 0.166 +89%
Maryland 17 0.160 +82%
Georgia 35 0.154 +75%
Massachusetts 15 0.124 +41%
Washington 16 0.111 +26%
New York 43 0.109 +23%
Texas 85 0.106 +20%
North Carolina 24 0.105 +20%
Pennsylvania 20 0.085 ≈ national
Ohio 19 0.080 -9%
Illinois 14 0.061 -31%
California 49 0.058 -34%
Alabama 5 0.053 -39%
Tennessee 8 0.050 -43%
Wisconsin 5 0.049 -45%
Missouri 5 0.041 -53%
Michigan 5 0.027 -69%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Maine – – –
Minnesota – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Jael

Jael is uncommon for girls in the United States, ranked #1,393 in 2025 with 157 babies given the name. It is currently holding steady compared with a decade ago.

Since 1957, 7,948 American babies have been named Jael, about 57% girls and 43% boys, making it a genuinely unisex name. Its peak came in 2012, when 409 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2010s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Jael stood among all girls' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Jael?

The median living Jael is about 13 years old; half are between 6 and 20. An estimated 7,900 people named Jael are alive in the United States today.

median 13 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Jael year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Girls Girls rank Boys Boys rank
2025 157 #1,393 147 #1,317
2024 149 #1,468 138 #1,364
2023 134 #1,578 148 #1,295
2022 143 #1,515 124 #1,461
2021 131 #1,605 140 #1,328
2020 127 #1,636 163 #1,184
2019 154 #1,444 133 #1,349
2018 173 #1,316 129 #1,370
2017 147 #1,509 136 #1,326
2016 145 #1,547 140 #1,301
2015 152 #1,501 128 #1,364
2014 159 #1,429 124 #1,380
2013 177 #1,327 161 #1,130
2012 206 #1,197 203 #987
2011 156 #1,446 117 #1,421
2010 161 #1,423 145 #1,221
2009 131 #1,698 154 #1,176
2008 167 #1,423 127 #1,351
2007 175 #1,383 146 #1,211
2006 105 #1,924 103 #1,483
2005 87 #2,129 113 #1,337
2004 84 #2,141 84 #1,572
2003 100 #1,850 64 #1,857
2002 94 #1,890 55 #2,009
2001 76 #2,158 43 #2,321
2000 87 #1,944 24 #3,465
1995 49 #2,565 22 #3,139
1990 36 #3,102 – –
1985 28 #3,187 9 #4,472
1980 20 #3,896 5 #6,659
1975 21 #3,323 – –
1970 6 #7,406 – –
1965 6 #6,080 – –
1960 – – – –
1955 – – – –
1950 – – – –
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Jael

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Jael Jael Biblical figure
  2. 2 Jael Ferreira Brazilian footballer b. 1988 · Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Jael, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Jael?

The median living Jael is about 13 years old. Half of all living Jaels are between 6 and 20 years old.

How many people named Jael are alive today?

An estimated 7,900 people named Jael are alive in the United States, based on 7,948 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Jael mean?

From the name of a minor biblical character, Hebrew יעל.

How popular is the name Jael in 2025?

Jael ranked #1,393 among girls' names in the United States in 2025, with 157 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Jael?

7,948 babies have been named Jael in the United States since 1957, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Jael most popular?

Jael peaked in 2012, when 409 newborns received the name.

Is Jael a boy or girl name?

Jael is used for both: about 57% of babies named Jael have been girls and 43% boys.

Is the name Jael rising or falling?

Jael has been roughly stable over the past decade.

Will Jael become more popular?

Jael looks stable. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 157 girls named Jael in 2030, ranking outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Jael?

Well-known people named Jael include Jael (religious figure), Jael Ferreira (soccer player).

Names like Jael

Names that sound and feel close to Jael: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Jael with similar names → More names starting with J →