Top 20 US name Girls' name Peak 1918 296,198 births

Hazel — #19 US girls' name

296,198 babies named Hazel in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1918. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s36441890s201541900s238021910s570681920s589841930s285671940s166571950s91351960s36741970s14891980s12351990s16832000s59302010s339132020s30263
#19
of 17,661 girls in use

More common than 99.9% of names given to girls today.

1920s
Peak decade

20% of everyone ever named Hazel was born in this single decade.

1918
Single peak year

7,615 babies were named Hazel in 1918 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Hazel

The Social Security Administration has registered 296,198 babies named Hazel between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a girl's name, Hazel currently holds the #19 rank among girls for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1918, when 7,615 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Hazel performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 58,984 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Hazel shows notable generational variation in parental adoption. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in Texas, which accounts for 16,508 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by North Carolina and California. In total, SSA state-level files list Hazel in 51 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Hazel in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 296,198 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Hazel at a glance

Top 100 girls' name

Total births

296,198

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1918

7,615 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#19

In the top 100

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Hazel popularity over time — girls

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Top 100 girls' name
Peak year (1918)
7,615
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
-2,00002,0004,0006,0008,000 202420051986196719481929191018911880 21

Hazel popularity over time — boys

2,865 total births recorded since 1886 (Hazel as boys' name)

Unisex variant — 2,865 births
020406080100 202420091968195119371923190918951886 6

Hazel by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
58,984 births that decade — 20% of Hazel's all-time total
1880s36441890s201541900s238021910s570681920s589841930s285671940s166571950s91351960s36741970s14891980s12351990s16832000s59302010s339132020s30263

Hazel by state

Where Hazel concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Hazel
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 Texas
16,508 5.6%
#2 North Carolina
13,735 4.6%
#3 California
12,994 4.4%
#4 Pennsylvania
10,662 3.6%
#5 Georgia
9,856 3.3%
#6 Ohio
9,532 3.2%
#7 Tennessee
9,096 3.1%
#8 Virginia
9,060 3.1%
Texas share of Hazel's total US births 5.6%
Even split

16,508 of 296,198 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 51 reporting states.

Hazel appears in 51 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Hazel?
296,198 babies have been named Hazel since 1880. It currently ranks #19 among girls. The peak year was 1918 with 7,615 births.
When was Hazel most popular?
Hazel was most popular in the 1920s decade with 58,984 total births. The single peak year was 1918.
Where is Hazel most popular?
The top states for the name Hazel are Texas (16,508 births), North Carolina (13,735 births), California (12,994 births).
How long has the name Hazel been used?
Hazel has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Hazel?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Hazle, Hazelle, Hazley, Hazely, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for girls.

Keep exploring Hazel

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.