boys' name ★ peaked 1993

Jamal

Meaning beauty Gender Boy · 1% girls Rank 2025 #1,197 Trend ↓ Falling 29%

From Arabic جَمَال (jamāl, “beauty”).

Rank 2025
#1,197
among boys · ↓13 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
169
named Jamal · -3% vs 2024
How common
1 in 10,107
boys born in 2025
Peak year
1993
1,253 babies
All-time total
33,501
#643 all-time among boys
First recorded
1946
in Social Security records

Jamal popularity over time

33,501 babies have been named Jamal since 1946, 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
0.190.380.560.7518801900192019401960198020002020BoysGirls
BoysGirls

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 – 11 11 1 – #3,338
1950s – 91 91 9 +727% #1,513
1960s 22 558 580 58 +537% #480
1970s 95 4,691 4,786 479 +725% #317
1980s 102 7,187 7,289 729 +52% #237
1990s 47 10,265 10,312 1,031 +41% #233
2000s – 5,898 5,898 590 -43% #346
2010s – 3,266 3,266 327 -45% #609
2020s (to 2025) – 1,268 1,268 211 -35% #868

Where Jamal is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (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 boys Implied rank
2026 159 0.09 outside top 500
2027 151 0.09 outside top 500
2028 144 0.08 outside top 500
2029 139 0.08 outside top 500
2030 134 0.08 outside top 500

Where Jamal is most popular

Boys named Jamal per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.118 per 1,000. Strongest in Louisiana, Michigan, 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 boys named Jamal 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 Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Louisiana 34 0.332 +181%
Michigan 64 0.312 +164%
Maryland 30 0.252 +112%
Georgia 63 0.249 +110%
Florida 90 0.190 +60%
Ohio 45 0.170 +43%
New Jersey 32 0.159 +34%
Virginia 26 0.137 +16%
North Carolina 34 0.133 +12%
Massachusetts 18 0.131 +11%
New York 56 0.129 +9%
Illinois 33 0.129 +9%
Pennsylvania 31 0.117 ≈ national
Texas 97 0.110 -7%
Tennessee 16 0.089 -25%
Mississippi 5 0.088 -26%
California 73 0.080 -33%
Oklahoma 7 0.079 -33%
South Carolina 8 0.077 -35%
Alabama 7 0.064 -46%
Minnesota 7 0.057 -52%
Colorado 6 0.046 -61%
Indiana 7 0.044 -63%
Arizona 6 0.037 -69%
Washington 5 0.031 -74%
Alaska – – –
Arkansas – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Maine – – –
Missouri – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Dakota – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Wisconsin – – –
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 Jamal

Jamal is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #1,197 in 2025 with 169 babies given the name. It is currently declining compared with a decade ago.

Since 1946, 33,501 American babies have been named Jamal. Its peak came in 1993, when 1,253 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 1990s.

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 Jamal stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Jamal?

The median living Jamal is about 32 years old; half are between 22 and 40. An estimated 32 thousand people named Jamal are alive in the United States today.

median 32 020406080100

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

Jamal 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 – – 169 #1,197
2024 – – 175 #1,184
2023 – – 211 #1,036
2022 – – 201 #1,087
2021 – – 267 #868
2020 – – 245 #912
2019 – – 258 #860
2018 – – 305 #768
2017 – – 308 #762
2016 – – 353 #703
2015 – – 330 #739
2014 – – 306 #766
2013 – – 303 #752
2012 – – 345 #690
2011 – – 351 #673
2010 – – 407 #609
2009 – – 410 #613
2008 – – 456 #567
2007 – – 483 #532
2006 – – 514 #505
2005 – – 553 #463
2004 – – 589 #442
2003 – – 655 #398
2002 – – 726 #363
2001 – – 786 #346
2000 – – 726 #366
1995 7 #10,981 1,059 #266
1990 12 #7,046 1,112 #247
1985 7 #8,685 620 #323
1980 13 #5,343 581 #327
1975 8 #6,740 469 #357
1970 9 #5,556 284 #477
1965 – – 22 #1,691
1960 – – 20 #1,837
1955 – – – –
1950 – – 6 #3,488
1945 – – – –
1940 – – – –
1935 – – – –
1930 – – – –
1925 – – – –
1920 – – – –
1915 – – – –
1910 – – – –
1905 – – – –
1900 – – – –
1895 – – – –
1890 – – – –
1885 – – – –
1880 – – – –

Famous people named Jamal

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

  1. 1 Jamal Khashoggi Jamal Khashoggi Saudi journalist and dissident (1958–2018) Contemporary
  2. 2 Jamal Murray Jamal Murray Canadian basketball player (born 1997) Contemporary
  3. 3 Jamal Crawford Jamal Crawford American basketball player (born 1980) Contemporary
  4. 4 Jamal Mashburn American basketball player (born 1972) Contemporary
  5. 5 Jamal Lewis Jamal Lewis Footballer (born 1998) Contemporary
  6. 6 Jamal Blackman Jamal Blackman English footballer (born 1993) Contemporary
  7. 7 Jamal Alioui Moroccan footballer and manager (born 1982) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Jamal?

The median living Jamal is about 32 years old. Half of all living Jamals are between 22 and 40 years old.

How many people named Jamal are alive today?

An estimated 32 thousand people named Jamal are alive in the United States, based on 33,501 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Jamal mean?

From Arabic جَمَال (jamāl, “beauty”).

How popular is the name Jamal in 2025?

Jamal ranked #1,197 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 169 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Jamal?

33,501 babies have been named Jamal in the United States since 1946, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Jamal most popular?

Jamal peaked in 1993, when 1,253 newborns received the name.

Is Jamal a boy or girl name?

Jamal is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 99% of babies with the name.

Is the name Jamal rising or falling?

Jamal is declining, less popular now than a decade ago.

Will Jamal become more popular?

Jamal is trending downward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 134 boys named Jamal in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Jamal?

Well-known people named Jamal include Jamal Khashoggi (writer), Jamal Murray (basketball player), Jamal Crawford (basketball player).

Names like Jamal

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

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