Ariell
Of Hebrew origin, a feminine name meaning "lion of God".
Name Census estimates that about 866 living Americans carry the first name Ariell. It is a predominantly female name (99.4% of registrations). The average person named Ariell today is around 25 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ariell births was 1990 (69 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ariell. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
866
~ 1 in 395,790 Americans
Peak year
1990
69 babies that year
Average age
25
years old
1985 SSA rank
#6,590
Tracked since 1982
Census
Ariell in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 725 people with the first name Ariell, which placed it at #15,757 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#15,757
National first-name rank
People counted
725
725 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
43.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ariell
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ariell is Black at 43.6%. The next largest groups are White (29.2%) and Hispanic (17.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Ariell described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Ariell at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American43.6% · 316
- White29.2% · 212
- Hispanic or Latino17.4% · 126
- Two or more races7.6% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 4
Gender
Gender distribution for Ariell
Out of the 889 babies given the name Ariell since 1880, 99.4% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Ariell as a male name
- Ranked #6,590 in 1985
- 5 male births in 1985
- Peak: 1985 (5 births)
Ariell as a female name
- Ranked #13,609 in 2024
- 6 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1990 (69 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ariell leans strongly female. 689 people counted with this name were female (93.7%), compared with 46 male bearers (6.3%).
Popularity
Ariell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ariell from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 347 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ariell by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Ariell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ariells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. California, New York, Florida recorded the most babies named Ariell, while Michigan, Illinois, Georgia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 11 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Ariell
The name Ariell has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, with its roots dating back to ancient times. The name is derived from the Hebrew word "Ariel," which means "lion of God" or "lioness of God." This name holds biblical significance as it is mentioned in the Book of Isaiah in the Old Testament, where it is used as a symbolic name for Jerusalem.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ariell can be found in the biblical text of the Book of Ezra, which dates back to the 5th century BC. In this text, the name appears as "Ariel" and is associated with a person who was a leader among the Jews returning from the Babylonian captivity.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Ariell. One of the most famous was Ariell Durant (1898-1981), an American writer and philosopher who co-authored the celebrated work "The Story of Civilization" alongside her husband, Will Durant. This monumental series explored the cultural and intellectual history of humanity.
Another prominent figure with the name Ariell was Ariell Brafman (1941-2008), an Israeli author and journalist. Brafman was known for his insightful works on Middle Eastern affairs and his contributions to the understanding of Israeli society and politics.
In the realm of literature, Ariell Daye (1928-2005) was an American poet and educator whose works explored themes of identity, culture, and social justice. Her poetry collections, such as "Gingerbread Men" and "The Afro-Hispanic Poetry of Ariell Daye," garnered critical acclaim.
The name Ariell also found its way into the world of music, with Ariell Liliana Sanchez-Stacey (born 1987), a Venezuelan-American classical soprano who has performed with prestigious opera companies and orchestras around the globe.
Lastly, Ariell Rayah Mueck (born 2002) is a Canadian actress known for her roles in television series and films, including "The Haunting Hour" and "The Man in the Basement." Although still early in her career, she has already garnered recognition for her talent and versatility.
People
Ariell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ariell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ariell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ariell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 866 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ariell going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 395,790 US residents.
Is Ariell a common name?
We classify Ariell as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 889 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ariell most popular?
The single biggest year for Ariell was 1990, when 69 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ariell is about 25 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ariell in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 725 people with the name Ariell, or 0.24 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #15,757 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Ariell in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Ariell?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ariell leans strongly female. 689 people counted with this name were female (93.7%), compared with 46 male bearers (6.3%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Ariell?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ariell is Black at 43.6%. The next largest groups are White (29.2%) and Hispanic (17.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Ariell most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Ariell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 43.6% (316 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Ariell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ariell a female name?
Yes, 99.4% of people registered as Ariell in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Ariell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ariell in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Ariell can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Ariell?
See how many people share the name Ariell on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.