Abigail
Abigail was given to 4,941 girls in 2025, #41 among girls’ names; 413,935 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 407,000 Americans named Abigail and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (98% of everyone recorded); the median is 20 years old and half are between 12 and 27.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Abigail by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Abigail mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Abigail is “a female given name from Hebrew, used since the 16th century, and currently quite popular.” Its etymology gives the senses “Abigail” (avigáyil,) and “my Father's joy” (literally) and “fountain of joy” (or).
From Hebrew אֲבִיגַיִל (avigáyil, “Abigail”, literally “my Father’s joy” or “fountain of joy”).
/ˈæb.ə.ɡeɪl/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Abigail?
#41 among girls’ names, 2025
Abigail fell from #7 in 2015 to #41 in 2025 among girls’ names; its share of girls born fell from 7.0 to 3.1 per 1,000.
15,955 babies in 2003, the peak
Abigail peaked in 2003, when 15,955 babies were given it (15,932 girls, #6 among girls’ names). The 4,941 births of 2025 are 31% of that peak.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4,941 | #41 | 3.1 |
| 2024 | 5,535 | #32 | 3.4 |
| 2023 | 5,687 | #31 | 3.5 |
| 2022 | 6,306 | #24 | 3.8 |
| 2021 | 6,993 | #17 | 4.3 |
| 2020 | 7,917 | #12 | 4.9 |
| 2019 | 9,196 | #11 | 5.5 |
| 2018 | 9,879 | #11 | 5.8 |
| 2017 | 10,645 | #10 | 6.2 |
| 2016 | 11,796 | #8 | 6.7 |
Every recorded year (146)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 12,422 | #7 | 7.0 |
| 2014 | 12,114 | #8 | 6.8 |
| 2013 | 12,429 | #8 | 7.1 |
| 2012 | 12,730 | #7 | 7.2 |
| 2011 | 13,266 | #7 | 7.5 |
| 2010 | 14,257 | #7 | 8.0 |
| 2009 | 14,401 | #8 | 7.8 |
| 2008 | 15,088 | #8 | 8.0 |
| 2007 | 15,476 | #8 | 8.0 |
| 2006 | 15,633 | #6 | 8.2 |
| 2005 | 15,756 | #4 | 8.5 |
| 2004 | 15,436 | #6 | 8.4 |
| 2003 | 15,932 | #6 | 8.7 |
| 2002 | 15,303 | #7 | 8.5 |
| 2001 | 14,807 | #8 | 8.2 |
| 2000 | 13,094 | #14 | 7.2 |
| 1999 | 11,686 | #18 | 6.6 |
| 1998 | 11,100 | #18 | 6.3 |
| 1997 | 9,630 | #26 | 5.5 |
| 1996 | 8,604 | #32 | 4.9 |
| 1995 | 7,825 | #36 | 4.4 |
| 1994 | 7,243 | #42 | 4.1 |
| 1993 | 5,185 | #67 | 2.9 |
| 1992 | 3,988 | #86 | 2.2 |
| 1991 | 3,799 | #92 | 2.0 |
| 1990 | 3,719 | #90 | 2.0 |
| 1989 | 3,405 | #94 | 1.8 |
| 1988 | 2,376 | #118 | 1.3 |
| 1987 | 2,001 | #138 | 1.2 |
| 1986 | 1,996 | #143 | 1.2 |
| 1985 | 1,848 | #153 | 1.1 |
| 1984 | 1,844 | #154 | 1.1 |
| 1983 | 1,909 | #151 | 1.1 |
| 1982 | 1,886 | #157 | 1.1 |
| 1981 | 1,816 | #156 | 1.1 |
| 1980 | 1,577 | #176 | 0.95 |
| 1979 | 1,226 | #213 | 0.76 |
| 1978 | 1,010 | #242 | 0.66 |
| 1977 | 794 | #298 | 0.52 |
| 1976 | 827 | #278 | 0.56 |
| 1975 | 615 | #353 | 0.42 |
| 1974 | 606 | #357 | 0.41 |
| 1973 | 479 | #413 | 0.33 |
| 1972 | 393 | #468 | 0.26 |
| 1971 | 392 | #491 | 0.24 |
| 1970 | 362 | #526 | 0.21 |
| 1969 | 281 | #590 | 0.17 |
| 1968 | 263 | #592 | 0.16 |
| 1967 | 244 | #609 | 0.15 |
| 1966 | 191 | #710 | 0.11 |
| 1965 | 209 | #679 | 0.12 |
| 1964 | 244 | #655 | 0.13 |
| 1963 | 255 | #633 | 0.13 |
| 1962 | 264 | #617 | 0.13 |
| 1961 | 232 | #680 | 0.11 |
| 1960 | 228 | #673 | 0.11 |
| 1959 | 206 | #698 | 0.10 |
| 1958 | 192 | #711 | 0.10 |
| 1957 | 187 | #730 | 0.09 |
| 1956 | 190 | #693 | 0.09 |
| 1955 | 180 | #699 | 0.09 |
| 1954 | 147 | #772 | 0.08 |
| 1953 | 169 | #704 | 0.09 |
| 1952 | 151 | #722 | 0.08 |
| 1951 | 137 | #748 | 0.08 |
| 1950 | 112 | #823 | 0.07 |
| 1949 | 113 | #822 | 0.07 |
| 1948 | 72 | #1,040 | 0.04 |
| 1947 | 78 | #1,002 | 0.04 |
| 1946 | 76 | #952 | 0.05 |
| 1945 | 53 | #1,079 | 0.04 |
| 1944 | 56 | #1,045 | 0.04 |
| 1943 | 63 | #996 | 0.05 |
| 1942 | 48 | #1,137 | 0.04 |
| 1941 | 40 | #1,184 | 0.03 |
| 1940 | 48 | #1,035 | 0.04 |
| 1939 | 53 | #974 | 0.05 |
| 1938 | 50 | #1,007 | 0.05 |
| 1937 | 45 | #1,063 | 0.04 |
| 1936 | 36 | #1,186 | 0.03 |
| 1935 | 37 | #1,162 | 0.04 |
| 1934 | 30 | #1,317 | 0.03 |
| 1933 | 32 | #1,262 | 0.03 |
| 1932 | 30 | #1,346 | 0.03 |
| 1931 | 27 | #1,420 | 0.03 |
| 1930 | 25 | #1,568 | 0.02 |
| 1929 | 33 | #1,305 | 0.03 |
| 1928 | 40 | #1,209 | 0.03 |
| 1927 | 33 | #1,403 | 0.03 |
| 1926 | 30 | #1,482 | 0.03 |
| 1925 | 37 | #1,296 | 0.03 |
| 1924 | 31 | #1,503 | 0.02 |
| 1923 | 32 | #1,428 | 0.03 |
| 1922 | 29 | #1,536 | 0.02 |
| 1921 | 24 | #1,765 | 0.02 |
| 1920 | 33 | #1,375 | 0.03 |
| 1919 | 31 | #1,393 | 0.03 |
| 1918 | 26 | #1,566 | 0.02 |
| 1917 | 41 | #1,110 | 0.04 |
| 1916 | 37 | #1,167 | 0.04 |
| 1915 | 38 | #1,094 | 0.04 |
| 1914 | 25 | #1,228 | 0.03 |
| 1913 | 14 | #1,601 | 0.02 |
| 1912 | 24 | #1,055 | 0.04 |
| 1911 | 18 | #1,031 | 0.04 |
| 1910 | 16 | #1,110 | 0.04 |
| 1909 | 12 | #1,219 | 0.03 |
| 1908 | 13 | #1,135 | 0.04 |
| 1907 | 12 | #1,142 | 0.04 |
| 1906 | 15 | #965 | 0.05 |
| 1905 | 11 | #1,162 | 0.04 |
| 1904 | 8 | #1,363 | 0.03 |
| 1903 | 20 | #760 | 0.08 |
| 1902 | 18 | #818 | 0.07 |
| 1901 | 13 | #918 | 0.05 |
| 1900 | 14 | #1,007 | 0.05 |
| 1899 | 7 | #1,277 | 0.03 |
| 1898 | 11 | #1,047 | 0.04 |
| 1897 | 15 | #826 | 0.06 |
| 1896 | 15 | #843 | 0.06 |
| 1895 | 15 | #815 | 0.06 |
| 1894 | 13 | #850 | 0.06 |
| 1893 | 21 | #630 | 0.10 |
| 1892 | 11 | #908 | 0.05 |
| 1891 | 11 | #839 | 0.06 |
| 1890 | 9 | #940 | 0.05 |
| 1889 | 20 | #567 | 0.11 |
| 1888 | 18 | #593 | 0.10 |
| 1887 | 13 | #633 | 0.09 |
| 1886 | 15 | #572 | 0.10 |
| 1885 | 9 | #745 | 0.07 |
| 1884 | 13 | #583 | 0.10 |
| 1883 | 11 | #579 | 0.10 |
| 1882 | 14 | #493 | 0.13 |
| 1881 | 8 | #623 | 0.09 |
| 1880 | 12 | #492 | 0.13 |
Ranks and shares: girls’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all girls SSA recorded that year.
Is Abigail a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Abigail has been given almost only to girls: 672 boys in 146 years of records.
Girls and boys named Abigail: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Abigail, and how old are they?
407,000 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 98% of the 413,935 Americans ever recorded as Abigail. The median Abigail alive today is 20 years old; half are between 12 and 27.
The 2020 Census counted 342,490 people named Abigail (341,731 women and girls, 759 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 372,956 born in the U.S. The Census count is 8% below that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 249 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 2,590 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 8,920 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 58,200 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 222,000 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 115,000 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Abigail born?
The states with the most babies named Abigail are California, Texas and Florida, with 30% of its births recorded by state in 2025.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, girls | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 613 | #33 | 0.8× |
| Texas | 570 | #34 | 0.9× |
| Florida | 316 | #40 | 0.8× |
| New York | 260 | #46 | 0.8× |
| North Carolina | 186 | #36 | 1.0× |
| Pennsylvania | 176 | #42 | 1.1× |
| Georgia | 175 | #28 | 0.9× |
| Virginia | 172 | #25 | 1.1× |
| Ohio | 160 | #48 | 1.1× |
| Illinois | 137 | #55 | 1.0× |
Where Abigail is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Abigail is most over-represented in Maine: since 1910 it was given 1.3 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among girls’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Abigail with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 442,118 babies since 1880, Abigail is the most given (94% of them). In 2025 it was given to 4,941 of their 5,050 babies (98%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Abigail
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Abigail and names like it
- Compare Abigail and AbbigailBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 2000sAbigail peaked in 2003.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Abigail since 1910.
- Hebrew namesWiktionary’s origin for Abigail: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 2003The year the most babies were named Abigail.
- The names of Generation ZMost people named Abigail alive today were born 1997-2012.
- Names starting with AMost given first.