Rafel — boys' name
125 babies named Rafel in U.S. Social Security records since 1922, with the highest year being 1970. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
32% of everyone ever named Rafel was born in this single decade.
10 babies were named Rafel in 1970 — its busiest year on record.
What the Data Says About Rafel
The Social Security Administration has registered 125 babies named Rafel between 1922 and 2013, spanning 92 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Rafel currently falls outside the top 1,000 boys' names for 2013. The name reached its historical peak in 1970, when 10 babies received it in a single year.
Decade-level aggregation shows that Rafel performed strongest in the 1980s, accumulating 40 births during that ten-year window. Across the 8 decades of recorded activity, Rafel shows a clear decline from its mid-century high.
No etymological entry is currently available for Rafel 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 125 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.
Rafel at a glance
Last recorded 2013Peak year
Current rank
Active since
Rafel popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2013–1922
- Peak year (1970)
- 10
- Annual births at peak — across 92 years of records
No longer in the modern top-1000 — last recorded 2013.
125 total births across 92 years of SSA records. Peaked in 1970 with 10 births in a single year.
Rafel by decade
Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance
- Peak decade
- 1980s
- 40 births that decade — 32% of Rafel's all-time total
Rafel decade highlights
- Peak decade 40 births
- Runner-up 33 births
- Modern era share 2010s + 2020s
- Decades tracked with recorded births
1980s was Rafel's strongest decade
40 babies received the name during that ten-year window — about 32% of all-time use.
Frequently Asked Questions
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Compare Rafel side by side: Rafel vs Rafael Rafel vs Rafe Rafel vs Raffaele
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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, 1922–2013 (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.