boys' name ★ peaked 2025

Shmuel

Gender Boy Rank 2025 #923 Trend ↑ Rising 27%

Borrowed from Yiddish שמואל (Shmuel), from Hebrew שְׁמוּאֵל (šəmūʾḗl).

Rank 2025
#923
among boys · ↑45 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
256
named Shmuel · +9% vs 2024
How common
1 in 6,672
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2025
256 babies
All-time total
5,972
#1,596 all-time among boys
First recorded
1953
in Social Security records

Shmuel popularity over time

5,972 babies have been named Shmuel since 1953, 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
0.050.10.150.218801900192019401960198020002020Peak 2025Boys

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 Boys Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – –
1890s – – – –
1900s – – – –
1910s – – – –
1920s – – – –
1930s – – – –
1940s – – – –
1950s 23 2 – #3,389
1960s 94 9 +309% #2,019
1970s 244 24 +160% #1,624
1980s 519 52 +113% #1,135
1990s 723 72 +39% #1,280
2000s 1,125 113 +56% #1,239
2010s 1,850 185 +64% #942
2020s (to 2025) 1,394 232 +26% #919

Where Shmuel 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 267 0.16 outside top 500
2027 276 0.16 outside top 500
2028 284 0.17 outside top 500
2029 291 0.17 outside top 500
2030 297 0.17 outside top 500

Where Shmuel is most popular

Boys named Shmuel per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.138 per 1,000. Strongest in New Jersey, New York, 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 Shmuel 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
New Jersey 529 2.63 +1801%
New York 453 1.05 +657%
Maryland 21 0.176 +27%
Illinois 22 0.086 -38%
Florida 20 0.042 -69%
California 28 0.031 -78%
Michigan 5 0.024 -82%
Pennsylvania 6 0.023 -84%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Arkansas – – –
Arizona – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Georgia – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Indiana – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maine – – –
Minnesota – – –
Missouri – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Carolina – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
Ohio – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Oregon – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Texas – – –
Utah – – –
Virginia – – –
Vermont – – –
Washington – – –
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 Shmuel

Shmuel is uncommon for boys in the United States, ranked #923 in 2025 with 256 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1953, 5,972 American babies have been named Shmuel. Its peak came in 2025, when 256 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

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

How old are people named Shmuel?

The median living Shmuel is about 14 years old; half are between 6 and 26. An estimated 5,900 people named Shmuel are alive in the United States today.

median 14 020406080100

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

Shmuel year by year

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

Year Boys Boys rank
2025 256 #923
2024 234 #968
2023 246 #927
2022 253 #919
2021 205 #1,048
2020 200 #1,029
2019 203 #1,027
2018 198 #1,032
2017 222 #942
2016 204 #1,005
2015 200 #1,016
2014 165 #1,150
2013 187 #1,034
2012 147 #1,215
2011 142 #1,234
2010 182 #1,058
2009 135 #1,301
2008 141 #1,239
2007 142 #1,244
2006 128 #1,299
2005 108 #1,389
2004 108 #1,355
2003 90 #1,463
2002 93 #1,412
2001 96 #1,348
2000 84 #1,476
1995 79 #1,325
1990 55 #1,545
1985 49 #1,410
1980 32 #1,800
1975 31 #1,655
1970 20 #2,046
1965 10 #2,753
1960 11 #2,665
1955 5 #4,319
1950 – –
1945 – –
1940 – –
1935 – –
1930 – –
1925 – –
1920 – –
1915 – –
1910 – –
1905 – –
1900 – –
1895 – –
1890 – –
1885 – –
1880 – –

Famous people named Shmuel

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

  1. 1 Shmuel Yosef Agnon Shmuel Yosef Agnon Israeli writer and Nobel laureate 1888–1970 · 19th century
  2. 2 Shmuel Rosenthal Shmuel Rosenthal Israeli footballer (born 1947) Contemporary

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

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

How old is the average Shmuel?

The median living Shmuel is about 14 years old. Half of all living Shmuels are between 6 and 26 years old.

How many people named Shmuel are alive today?

An estimated 5,900 people named Shmuel are alive in the United States, based on 5,972 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Shmuel mean?

Borrowed from Yiddish שמואל (Shmuel), from Hebrew שְׁמוּאֵל (šəmūʾḗl).

How popular is the name Shmuel in 2025?

Shmuel ranked #923 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 256 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Shmuel?

5,972 babies have been named Shmuel in the United States since 1953, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Shmuel most popular?

Shmuel peaked in 2025, when 256 newborns received the name.

Is Shmuel a boy or girl name?

Shmuel is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Shmuel rising or falling?

Shmuel is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Shmuel become more popular?

Shmuel is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 297 boys named Shmuel 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 Shmuel?

Well-known people named Shmuel include Shmuel Yosef Agnon (writer), Shmuel Rosenthal (soccer player).

Names like Shmuel

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

Compare Shmuel with similar names → More names starting with S →