Raphael
Raphael was given to 807 boys in 2025, #394 among boys’ names; 24,581 Americans have been recorded with it since 1882 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 20,400 Americans named Raphael and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (83% of everyone recorded); the median is 21 years old and half are between 9 and 39.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Raphael by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Raphael mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Raphael is “a male given name from Hebrew.”
Latin Raphael. From Koine Greek Ῥᾱφᾱήλ (Rhāphāḗl), from Hebrew רָפָאֵל (Rāfāʾēl, literally “God cures/has healed”).
/ˌɹɑ.faɪˈɛl/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Raphael?
#394 among boys’ names, 2025
Raphael rose from #537 in 2015 to #394 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born rose from 0.28 to 0.47 per 1,000.
807 babies in 2025, the peak
Raphael peaked in 2025, when 807 boys were given it, #394 among boys’ names. In 2024 it went to 751 boys.
Births by sex.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 807 | #394 | 0.47 |
| 2024 | 751 | #420 | 0.44 |
| 2023 | 686 | #453 | 0.40 |
| 2022 | 641 | #483 | 0.37 |
| 2021 | 548 | #538 | 0.31 |
| 2020 | 559 | #513 | 0.32 |
| 2019 | 545 | #523 | 0.30 |
| 2018 | 536 | #529 | 0.30 |
| 2017 | 561 | #516 | 0.30 |
| 2016 | 551 | #533 | 0.29 |
Every recorded year (139)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 533 | #537 | 0.28 |
| 2014 | 461 | #596 | 0.24 |
| 2013 | 423 | #600 | 0.22 |
| 2012 | 387 | #629 | 0.20 |
| 2011 | 356 | #668 | 0.19 |
| 2010 | 369 | #653 | 0.19 |
| 2009 | 400 | #625 | 0.20 |
| 2008 | 397 | #622 | 0.19 |
| 2007 | 333 | #702 | 0.16 |
| 2006 | 331 | #682 | 0.16 |
| 2005 | 316 | #668 | 0.16 |
| 2004 | 304 | #671 | 0.15 |
| 2003 | 253 | #725 | 0.13 |
| 2002 | 269 | #682 | 0.14 |
| 2001 | 266 | #681 | 0.14 |
| 2000 | 304 | #619 | 0.15 |
| 1999 | 268 | #644 | 0.14 |
| 1998 | 256 | #668 | 0.13 |
| 1997 | 260 | #641 | 0.14 |
| 1996 | 254 | #656 | 0.13 |
| 1995 | 251 | #658 | 0.13 |
| 1994 | 261 | #642 | 0.14 |
| 1993 | 270 | #624 | 0.14 |
| 1992 | 311 | #577 | 0.16 |
| 1991 | 371 | #516 | 0.18 |
| 1990 | 450 | #464 | 0.22 |
| 1989 | 303 | #553 | 0.15 |
| 1988 | 303 | #525 | 0.16 |
| 1987 | 253 | #568 | 0.14 |
| 1986 | 268 | #546 | 0.15 |
| 1985 | 256 | #549 | 0.14 |
| 1984 | 208 | #587 | 0.12 |
| 1983 | 179 | #642 | 0.10 |
| 1982 | 191 | #628 | 0.11 |
| 1981 | 167 | #669 | 0.09 |
| 1980 | 158 | #692 | 0.09 |
| 1979 | 157 | #681 | 0.09 |
| 1978 | 171 | #643 | 0.10 |
| 1977 | 182 | #621 | 0.11 |
| 1976 | 182 | #607 | 0.12 |
| 1975 | 181 | #604 | 0.12 |
| 1974 | 162 | #634 | 0.10 |
| 1973 | 192 | #573 | 0.12 |
| 1972 | 180 | #595 | 0.11 |
| 1971 | 187 | #613 | 0.11 |
| 1970 | 168 | #626 | 0.09 |
| 1969 | 153 | #643 | 0.09 |
| 1968 | 130 | #664 | 0.07 |
| 1967 | 105 | #725 | 0.06 |
| 1966 | 110 | #710 | 0.06 |
| 1965 | 96 | #753 | 0.05 |
| 1964 | 98 | #769 | 0.05 |
| 1963 | 99 | #769 | 0.05 |
| 1962 | 107 | #742 | 0.05 |
| 1961 | 116 | #714 | 0.05 |
| 1960 | 93 | #795 | 0.04 |
| 1959 | 97 | #780 | 0.05 |
| 1958 | 99 | #742 | 0.05 |
| 1957 | 97 | #763 | 0.04 |
| 1956 | 94 | #759 | 0.04 |
| 1955 | 93 | #758 | 0.05 |
| 1954 | 110 | #689 | 0.05 |
| 1953 | 81 | #796 | 0.04 |
| 1952 | 86 | #760 | 0.04 |
| 1951 | 71 | #834 | 0.04 |
| 1950 | 65 | #847 | 0.04 |
| 1949 | 69 | #821 | 0.04 |
| 1948 | 83 | #742 | 0.05 |
| 1947 | 69 | #836 | 0.04 |
| 1946 | 64 | #824 | 0.04 |
| 1945 | 61 | #794 | 0.05 |
| 1944 | 48 | #931 | 0.04 |
| 1943 | 58 | #881 | 0.04 |
| 1942 | 68 | #784 | 0.05 |
| 1941 | 63 | #795 | 0.05 |
| 1940 | 72 | #723 | 0.06 |
| 1939 | 69 | #723 | 0.06 |
| 1938 | 50 | #893 | 0.05 |
| 1937 | 63 | #777 | 0.06 |
| 1936 | 69 | #728 | 0.07 |
| 1935 | 53 | #869 | 0.05 |
| 1934 | 59 | #820 | 0.06 |
| 1933 | 71 | #725 | 0.07 |
| 1932 | 72 | #738 | 0.07 |
| 1931 | 85 | #648 | 0.08 |
| 1930 | 97 | #625 | 0.09 |
| 1929 | 96 | #626 | 0.09 |
| 1928 | 99 | #615 | 0.09 |
| 1927 | 90 | #682 | 0.08 |
| 1926 | 81 | #711 | 0.07 |
| 1925 | 99 | #640 | 0.09 |
| 1924 | 108 | #613 | 0.10 |
| 1923 | 94 | #661 | 0.09 |
| 1922 | 130 | #554 | 0.12 |
| 1921 | 101 | #640 | 0.09 |
| 1920 | 103 | #626 | 0.10 |
| 1919 | 98 | #614 | 0.10 |
| 1918 | 100 | #615 | 0.10 |
| 1917 | 85 | #649 | 0.09 |
| 1916 | 117 | #531 | 0.13 |
| 1915 | 100 | #569 | 0.12 |
| 1914 | 95 | #504 | 0.15 |
| 1913 | 68 | #522 | 0.13 |
| 1912 | 55 | #543 | 0.13 |
| 1911 | 30 | #558 | 0.13 |
| 1910 | 19 | #700 | 0.10 |
| 1909 | 12 | #886 | 0.07 |
| 1908 | 24 | #520 | 0.16 |
| 1907 | 19 | #582 | 0.13 |
| 1906 | 13 | #698 | 0.10 |
| 1905 | 13 | #693 | 0.10 |
| 1904 | 10 | #799 | 0.08 |
| 1903 | 9 | #833 | 0.08 |
| 1902 | 15 | #581 | 0.12 |
| 1901 | 13 | #583 | 0.12 |
| 1900 | 8 | #1,030 | 0.05 |
| 1899 | 10 | #702 | 0.09 |
| 1898 | 13 | #630 | 0.11 |
| 1897 | 13 | #614 | 0.12 |
| 1896 | 9 | #815 | 0.08 |
| 1895 | 9 | #785 | 0.08 |
| 1894 | 9 | #774 | 0.08 |
| 1893 | 11 | #643 | 0.10 |
| 1892 | 13 | #590 | 0.11 |
| 1891 | 9 | #690 | 0.09 |
| 1889 | 11 | #618 | 0.10 |
| 1887 | 5 | #1,037 | 0.05 |
| 1886 | 7 | #829 | 0.06 |
| 1882 | 5 | #1,064 | 0.04 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Raphael a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 24,581 Americans recorded as Raphael, 1% are girls and 99% boys. In 2025 it went to 807 boys; SSA lists no girls with it that year (fewer than 5, or none).
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Raphael: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Raphael, and how old are they?
20,400 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 83% of the 24,581 Americans ever recorded as Raphael. The median Raphael alive today is 21 years old; half are between 9 and 39.
The 2020 Census counted 20,518 people named Raphael (232 women and girls, 20,286 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 17,080 born in the U.S. The Census count is 20% above 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 | 228 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 1,160 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 2,290 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 4,140 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 5,000 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 7,550 |
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 Raphael born?
The states with the most babies named Raphael are California, Texas and New York, with 40% of its births recorded by state in 2025.
| State | Births 2025 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 116 | #315 | 1.0× |
| Texas | 108 | #350 | 0.8× |
| New York | 90 | #219 | 2.1× |
| Florida | 62 | #320 | 1.2× |
| New Jersey | 31 | #289 | 1.4× |
| Illinois | 26 | #429 | 0.9× |
| Washington | 24 | #318 | 0.7× |
| Pennsylvania | 23 | #452 | 0.7× |
| Massachusetts | 21 | #285 | 1.0× |
| Virginia | 20 | #405 | 0.7× |
Where Raphael is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Raphael is most over-represented in New York: since 1910 it was given 2.1 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 Raphael 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 6 names spelled alike, given to 116,411 babies since 1880, Raphael is the second most given (21% of them). In 2025 it was given to 807 of their 2,455 babies (33%), again the second 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 Raphael
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 Raphael and names like it
- Compare Raphael and RafaelBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 2020sRaphael peaked in 2025.
- New York’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Raphael since 1910.
- Hebrew namesWiktionary’s origin for Raphael: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 2025The year the most babies were named Raphael.
- The names of Generation AlphaMost people named Raphael alive today were born 2013-2025.
- Names starting with RMost given first.