unisex name
Angel
AYN-jul
- Origin Greek
- Gender Unisex
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 100 (US)
- Births on record 389,682
the United States
#67
2025 births
Angel is a name of Greek origin meaning "messenger," from angelos. The word did not originally mean a celestial being at all — it was the ordinary Greek term for a messenger, and acquired its religious sense through biblical translation.
- Angel is a name of Greek origin.
- Peaked in 2006, when 13,828 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 625 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1888.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Angel over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 8 |
| 1890s | 27 |
| 1900s | 53 |
| 1910s | 467 |
| 1920s | 1,258 |
| 1930s | 1,251 |
| 1940s | 1,748 |
| 1950s | 5,315 |
| 1960s | 11,936 |
| 1970s | 27,992 |
| 1980s | 32,534 |
| 1990s | 56,491 |
| 2000s | 119,779 |
| 2010s | 74,601 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 32,714 |
What Angel means
Angel means messenger, from the Greek angelos. The theological meaning came later: translators used the everyday word for messenger to render the Hebrew mal'akh, which likewise means messenger, and the religious sense attached to it afterwards.
Where Angel comes from
Angel comes from the Greek angelos, meaning a messenger of any kind. When the Hebrew scriptures were translated into Greek, angelos was used for mal'akh, the Hebrew word for messenger, including divine ones — and over time the religious sense displaced the ordinary one in European languages. The same root survives in evangelist, literally a bringer of good news. As a given name Angel is long established in Spanish as Ángel, a common male name, and it is predominantly male in Spanish-speaking communities while being used for both in wider American use — a split that reflects two different naming traditions rather than any change in the name.
Angel in use
Angelos was simply the Greek for messenger; the winged sense arrived through translation of scripture.
How popular is Angel?
In 2025, Angel was given to 5,308 babies in the United States, ranking #67 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Where Angel is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
How Angel is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Angèl | Angèl is a rare spelling of Angel, written with a grave accent and recorded about 15 times, mostly in France. | 15 |
Names that peaked alongside Angel
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Angel also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Angel over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Angel
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Angel in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Angel
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Angel — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Angel
What does the name Angel mean?
Angel means "messenger," from the Greek angelos.
Is Angel a boy's or a girl's name?
In Spanish-speaking tradition Ángel is firmly male; in wider American use it is given to both.
Did angel always mean a heavenly being?
No. Angelos was the ordinary Greek word for a messenger; the religious sense came through biblical translation.
How popular is the name Angel?
In 2025, Angel was given to 5,308 babies in the United States, ranking #67 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
How many syllables are in Angel?
Angel has 2 syllables.
When was Angel most popular?
Angel peaked in 2006, when 13,828 babies were given the name. It has been falling over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Angel?
Angel is usually shortened to Angie.
Is Angel a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Angel currently ranks #67 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.