Skip to content
BabyNames
Boy name#406 of boy names

Abel

Pronounced EY1 B AH0 L (ARPABET)

  • 2 syllables
  • Peaked 2015
  • 145 years in use
  • Biblical
  • 2 spellings
Compare

How popular is Abel?

Abel is a boys' name, and has been in the record since the data starts in 1880. It has been given to 66,032 children — the 406th most common boys' name on record.

It is gaining, with the past decade running 65% ahead of the one before it. Its best single year was 2015, when 3,293 children were given it.

Two other spellings are counted in that total — Able and Abell — because they are pronounced identically.

01,2502,5003,7505,00018901920195019802010
2015Boys: 3,293Girls: 10

Spelling variants

These spellings sound identical to Abel and are counted together with it, which is why the totals here are higher than a single-spelling count.

  • Able
  • Abell

Characteristics

  • Biblical (Person)
  • 2 syllables
Phonetic detail
Pronunciations:
EY1 B AH0 L
Stress pattern:
10
Syllables:
2

Stress digits mark unstressed (0), primary (1) and secondary (2) syllables.

Names like Abel

Same first letter and syllable count, peaking around the same time.

Sibling names for Abel

Names from the same era with a matching rhythm but a different initial.

Frequently asked questions

How popular is the name Abel?
Abel ranks 406th among boys' names in US records, with 66,032 births since 1880. Over the past decade it accounts for 23,632.
Is Abel a unisex name?
No. Abel is recorded almost entirely as a boys' name; births to the other gender are too few to register as a share.
When was Abel most popular?
2015, when 3,293 children were given the name. It has been in use for 145 years and is still recorded as of 2024.
How else is Abel spelled?
Able, Abell. All of these sound the same and are counted together in the totals on this page.