Boys' name · since 1985
Tel
194 babies named Tel in U.S. Social Security records since 1985, with the highest year being 1985. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #13,167 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 194
- born since 1985
- 1990s
- peak decade
194 boys have been named Tel since 1985, though it isn't currently a top-ranked name.
Tel has 194 recorded births among boys since 1985, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1985 to 2024.
- #13,167 of 45,481 all-time among boys
- 194 born since 1985
- 1990s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Tel ranks #13,167 of 45,481 boys' names by all-time recorded births (highest first). 194 born since 1985, peaking in the 1990s.
- #13,167 of 45,481
- all-time among boys
- 194
- born since 1985
- 1990s
- peak decade
Tel's 194 recorded births place it above 71.03% of the 45,481 boys names in the full SSA archive.
No state rows cleared SSA’s public reporting threshold for this name.
Tel's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Tel's full recorded timeline at 2000, 45% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 55% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 2001, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1985 peak of 11 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Tel popularity over time
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1985–2024
- Peak year (1985)
- 11
- Annual births at peak, across 40 years of records
Tel by decade
1990s is the heaviest window (64 births, 33% of the file).
1990s was Tel's strongest decade.
64 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 33% of all-time use.
Tel births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1980s
1980s
43 births
- 1990s
1990s
64 births
- 2000s
2000s
38 births
- 2010s 22
2010s
22 births
- 2020s
2020s
27 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 64 births (33% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Tel's data
- Tel's usage has stayed within range of its 1990s decade-level peak (64 total births) through the 2020s (27) -- a comparatively stable name, not a fading trend.
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Tel
Nearby Names Like Tel
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Tel
Compare Tel side by side: Tel vs Telly Tel vs Telvin Tel vs Telford
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Tel: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~1985)
Similar record span (~39 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1985–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Tel draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of August 2026.