Michel
Michel is given to both girls and boys: 9 girls and 22 boys were given it in 2025 (#10,633 among girls’ names and #4,641 among boys’, #7,830 among all names counting both); 14,094 Americans have been recorded with it since 1880 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026). Girls have outnumbered boys among babies named Michel every year since 2005.
An estimated 11,100 Americans named Michel and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (79% of everyone recorded); the median is 52 years old and half are between 35 and 65.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Michel by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Michel mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Michel is “a male given name from French, equivalent to English Michael.” Its etymology gives the sense “who is like God?” (literally).
Either a reborrowing of French Michel or a continuation (with pronunciation influenced by Modern French) of Middle English Michel, both from Old French Michel, from Latin Michāēl, borrowed from Koine Greek Μῐχᾱήλ (Mĭkhāḗl), from Biblical Hebrew מִיכָאֵל (mîḵāʾēl, literally “who is like God?”). Doublet of Michael, Miguel, and Mikhail.
/mɪˈʃɛl/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Michel?
#4,641 among boys’ names, 2025
Michel fell from #2,896 in 2015 to #4,641 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born fell from 21.4 to 12.9 per million.
325 babies in 1957, the peak
Michel peaked in 1957, when 325 babies were given it (284 boys, #457 among boys’ names). The 31 births of 2025 (girls and boys) are 10% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 9 | #10,633 | 22 | #4,641 |
| 2024 | 15 | #7,475 | 31 | #3,660 |
| 2023 | 11 | #9,404 | 27 | #4,079 |
| 2022 | 7 | #13,131 | 23 | #4,528 |
| 2021 | 7 | #13,056 | 25 | #4,186 |
| 2020 | 7 | #13,033 | 26 | #3,988 |
| 2019 | 5 | #17,209 | 26 | #4,067 |
| 2018 | 6 | #15,043 | 27 | #3,952 |
| 2017 | 9 | #11,315 | 30 | #3,637 |
| 2016 | 6 | #15,597 | 20 | #4,882 |
Every recorded year (127)
| Year | Girls | Girls’ rank | Boys | Boys’ rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 13 | #8,776 | 41 | #2,896 |
| 2014 | 11 | #9,947 | 26 | #3,976 |
| 2013 | under 5 | 36 | #3,101 | |
| 2012 | 18 | #7,062 | 34 | #3,279 |
| 2011 | 19 | #6,767 | 48 | #2,575 |
| 2010 | 29 | #4,928 | 42 | #2,855 |
| 2009 | 55 | #3,115 | 55 | #2,372 |
| 2008 | 44 | #3,687 | 52 | #2,452 |
| 2007 | 56 | #3,115 | 55 | #2,359 |
| 2006 | 75 | #2,477 | 63 | #2,092 |
| 2005 | 64 | #2,658 | 57 | #2,153 |
| 2004 | 62 | #2,664 | 68 | #1,821 |
| 2003 | 66 | #2,479 | 63 | #1,878 |
| 2002 | 59 | #2,625 | 49 | #2,180 |
| 2001 | 52 | #2,832 | 60 | #1,855 |
| 2000 | 53 | #2,763 | 62 | #1,772 |
| 1999 | 54 | #2,629 | 69 | #1,585 |
| 1998 | 31 | #3,795 | 64 | #1,633 |
| 1997 | 38 | #3,131 | 84 | #1,339 |
| 1996 | 51 | #2,494 | 69 | #1,469 |
| 1995 | 53 | #2,440 | 65 | #1,481 |
| 1994 | 48 | #2,607 | 85 | #1,267 |
| 1993 | 44 | #2,751 | 77 | #1,298 |
| 1992 | 46 | #2,667 | 85 | #1,223 |
| 1991 | 57 | #2,278 | 92 | #1,147 |
| 1990 | 39 | #2,930 | 132 | #890 |
| 1989 | 46 | #2,503 | 128 | #893 |
| 1988 | 32 | #3,128 | 111 | #908 |
| 1987 | 31 | #3,068 | 120 | #856 |
| 1986 | 40 | #2,494 | 123 | #820 |
| 1985 | 38 | #2,576 | 103 | #896 |
| 1984 | 39 | #2,450 | 124 | #777 |
| 1983 | 49 | #2,062 | 121 | #798 |
| 1982 | 77 | #1,545 | 132 | #765 |
| 1981 | 61 | #1,821 | 103 | #879 |
| 1980 | 56 | #1,926 | 95 | #917 |
| 1979 | 51 | #2,010 | 130 | #763 |
| 1978 | 61 | #1,718 | 120 | #771 |
| 1977 | 53 | #1,893 | 142 | #714 |
| 1976 | 74 | #1,431 | 118 | #767 |
| 1975 | 61 | #1,616 | 142 | #698 |
| 1974 | 54 | #1,699 | 129 | #722 |
| 1973 | 61 | #1,537 | 139 | #676 |
| 1972 | 64 | #1,499 | 149 | #658 |
| 1971 | 73 | #1,436 | 165 | #642 |
| 1970 | 89 | #1,254 | 167 | #628 |
| 1969 | 87 | #1,200 | 161 | #617 |
| 1968 | 80 | #1,229 | 169 | #584 |
| 1967 | 71 | #1,294 | 169 | #581 |
| 1966 | 89 | #1,127 | 185 | #562 |
| 1965 | 62 | #1,402 | 200 | #541 |
| 1964 | 58 | #1,490 | 196 | #565 |
| 1963 | 68 | #1,346 | 231 | #524 |
| 1962 | 55 | #1,521 | 200 | #558 |
| 1961 | 54 | #1,544 | 254 | #499 |
| 1960 | 56 | #1,476 | 267 | #487 |
| 1959 | 45 | #1,634 | 228 | #521 |
| 1958 | 41 | #1,693 | 226 | #515 |
| 1957 | 41 | #1,697 | 284 | #457 |
| 1956 | 42 | #1,652 | 223 | #506 |
| 1955 | 36 | #1,763 | 239 | #474 |
| 1954 | 31 | #1,901 | 241 | #468 |
| 1953 | 34 | #1,726 | 243 | #458 |
| 1952 | 31 | #1,810 | 223 | #466 |
| 1951 | 27 | #1,911 | 209 | #469 |
| 1950 | 26 | #1,895 | 193 | #483 |
| 1949 | 30 | #1,759 | 167 | #517 |
| 1948 | 24 | #1,989 | 134 | #577 |
| 1947 | 33 | #1,683 | 144 | #565 |
| 1946 | 20 | #2,133 | 128 | #569 |
| 1945 | 22 | #1,815 | 76 | #702 |
| 1944 | 12 | #2,724 | 70 | #744 |
| 1943 | 19 | #2,054 | 77 | #739 |
| 1942 | 27 | #1,618 | 70 | #773 |
| 1941 | under 5 | 46 | #948 | |
| 1940 | under 5 | 37 | #1,088 | |
| 1939 | 5 | #4,725 | 34 | #1,116 |
| 1938 | under 5 | 34 | #1,123 | |
| 1937 | under 5 | 23 | #1,432 | |
| 1936 | under 5 | 18 | #1,623 | |
| 1935 | under 5 | 25 | #1,386 | |
| 1934 | under 5 | 18 | #1,714 | |
| 1933 | under 5 | 27 | #1,298 | |
| 1932 | under 5 | 19 | #1,695 | |
| 1931 | under 5 | 24 | #1,445 | |
| 1930 | under 5 | 27 | #1,414 | |
| 1929 | under 5 | 28 | #1,366 | |
| 1928 | under 5 | 26 | #1,474 | |
| 1927 | under 5 | 31 | #1,343 | |
| 1926 | under 5 | 22 | #1,642 | |
| 1925 | under 5 | 31 | #1,322 | |
| 1924 | under 5 | 24 | #1,612 | |
| 1923 | under 5 | 29 | #1,374 | |
| 1922 | under 5 | 31 | #1,324 | |
| 1921 | under 5 | 31 | #1,350 | |
| 1920 | under 5 | 28 | #1,410 | |
| 1919 | under 5 | 29 | #1,339 | |
| 1918 | under 5 | 34 | #1,209 | |
| 1917 | under 5 | 18 | #1,788 | |
| 1916 | under 5 | 27 | #1,321 | |
| 1915 | under 5 | 24 | #1,397 | |
| 1914 | under 5 | 21 | #1,331 | |
| 1913 | under 5 | 17 | #1,299 | |
| 1912 | under 5 | 11 | #1,590 | |
| 1910 | under 5 | 6 | #1,528 | |
| 1908 | under 5 | 6 | #1,315 | |
| 1907 | under 5 | 8 | #1,067 | |
| 1906 | under 5 | 9 | #897 | |
| 1903 | under 5 | 7 | #984 | |
| 1902 | under 5 | 5 | #1,254 | |
| 1901 | under 5 | 5 | #1,158 | |
| 1899 | under 5 | 10 | #691 | |
| 1892 | under 5 | 7 | #921 | |
| 1889 | under 5 | 5 | #1,059 | |
| 1888 | under 5 | 8 | #796 | |
| 1883 | under 5 | 5 | #999 | |
| 1880 | under 5 | 6 | #878 |
Ranks: girls’ names and boys’ names ranked separately in each year’s SSA file; “under 5” is a year SSA did not list the name for that sex.
Is Michel a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 14,094 Americans recorded as Michel, 25% are girls and 75% boys.
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Michel: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Michel, and how old are they?
11,100 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 79% of the 14,094 Americans ever recorded as Michel. The median Michel alive today is 52 years old; half are between 35 and 65.
The 2020 Census counted 19,539 people named Michel (4,355 women and girls, 15,184 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 11,542 born in the U.S. The Census count is 1.7 times that prediction. Possible reasons: the Census counts people born abroad, whom SSA’s files leave out, and it records the name people give, which SSA may have recorded under another spelling or as part of a compound name.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 219 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 3,310 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 3,090 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 2,310 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 1,680 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 463 |
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 Michel born?
The states with the most babies named Michel are California, New York and Texas, with 53% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 1,773 | not ranked | 1.3× |
| New York | 1,135 | not ranked | 1.0× |
| Texas | 822 | not ranked | 0.8× |
| Florida | 406 | not ranked | 0.9× |
| Illinois | 401 | not ranked | 0.6× |
| Louisiana | 335 | not ranked | 1.2× |
| Ohio | 331 | not ranked | 0.5× |
| Michigan | 225 | not ranked | 0.4× |
| Massachusetts | 189 | not ranked | 0.5× |
| Missouri | 142 | not ranked | 0.4× |
Where Michel is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Michel is most over-represented in California: 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 boys’ 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 Michel 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 4,625,901 babies since 1880, Michel is the third most given (<1% of them). In 2025 it was given to 31 of their 8,279 babies (<1%), again the third 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 Michel
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 Michel and names like it
- Compare Michel and MichaelBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1950sMichel peaked in 1957.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Michel since 1910.
- French namesWiktionary’s origin for Michel: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1957The year the most babies were named Michel.
- The names of the Baby BoomersMost people named Michel alive today were born 1946-1964.
- Names starting with MMost given first.