Farrel
A masculine name derived from the medieval French word "ferrel" meaning "iron ring".
Name Census estimates that about 399 living Americans carry the first name Farrel. It is a predominantly male name (95.6% of registrations). The average person named Farrel today is around 69 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Farrel births was 1937 (25 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Farrel. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Farrel with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Farrel is about 69 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Farrels were born before 1967.
People living today
399
~ 1 in 859,033 Americans
Peak year
1937
25 babies that year
Average age
69
years old
2003 SSA rank
#4,349
Tracked since 1913
Census
Farrel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 578 people with the first name Farrel, which placed it at #18,590 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
#18,590
National first-name rank
People counted
578
578 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
75.4% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Farrel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Farrel is White at 75.4%. The next largest groups are Black (13.5%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Farrel 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 Farrel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.4% · 436
- Black or African American13.5% · 78
- Two or more races4.2% · 24
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.6% · 15
- Hispanic or Latino1.7% · 10
Gender
Gender distribution for Farrel
Farrel leans heavily male at 95.6% of total registrations, but 38 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Farrel as a male name
- Ranked #11,446 in 2003
- 5 male births in 2003
- Peak: 1937 (25 births)
Farrel as a female name
- Ranked #4,349 in 1943
- 6 female births in 1943
- Peak: 1939 (6 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Farrel leans strongly male. 486 people counted with this name were male (83.8%), compared with 94 female bearers (16.2%).
Popularity
Farrel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Farrel from the 1910s through to the 2000s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1930s, with 179 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1930s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Farrel 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 Farrel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Farrels live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. Louisiana, California, Indiana recorded the most babies named Farrel, while Missouri, Kansas, Indiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 8 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Farrel
The name Farrel is believed to have its origins in the Gaelic language, specifically from the Irish Fir meaning "true" or "sincere." It is a variant spelling of the more common Irish name Farrell, which can also be spelled as Ferrell or Farrill.
The earliest known use of the name can be traced back to the 12th century in Ireland, where it was primarily used as a surname. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this name was Sir Piers Farrell, an Irish knight and landowner who lived in the 13th century.
In the 16th century, the name gained popularity as a first name among Irish families, particularly those with strong ties to their Celtic heritage. During this time, the name was often associated with virtues such as honesty, loyalty, and integrity.
One notable figure in history who bore the name Farrel was Farrel Baggallay, an English judge and politician who lived from 1795 to 1869. He served as Lord Chief Baron of the Exchequer in the mid-19th century.
Another historical figure was Farrel Greenwood Gunnison, an American military officer and explorer who lived from 1824 to 1853. He led various expeditions in the western United States and was instrumental in mapping and surveying the territories.
In the 19th century, the name Farrel gained popularity among Irish immigrants who settled in the United States and other parts of the English-speaking world. One notable individual from this period was Farrel O'Gorman, an Irish-American author and journalist who lived from 1823 to 1883.
In more recent times, the name has been used across various cultures and countries, although it remains more prevalent in areas with strong Irish or Celtic influences. Notable individuals with the name Farrel include Farrel Richmond, an American actor and producer from the mid-20th century, and Farrel Pomrenke, an American author and educator who lived from 1932 to 2015.
Overall, the name Farrel has a rich history rooted in Irish and Celtic traditions, with a meaning that emphasizes truthfulness and sincerity. While its usage has evolved over the centuries, it continues to be a unique and meaningful name choice for many families.
People
Farrel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Farrel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Farrel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Farrel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 399 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Farrel 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 859,033 US residents.
Is Farrel a common name?
We classify Farrel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 82.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 869 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Farrel most popular?
The single biggest year for Farrel was 1937, when 25 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Farrel is about 69 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Farrel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 578 people with the name Farrel, or 0.19 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #18,590 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 Farrel 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 Farrel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Farrel leans strongly male. 486 people counted with this name were male (83.8%), compared with 94 female bearers (16.2%). 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 Farrel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Farrel is White at 75.4%. The next largest groups are Black (13.5%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Farrel most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Farrel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.4% (436 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 Farrel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Farrel a male name?
Yes, 95.6% of people registered as Farrel in the SSA data are male. 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 Farrel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Farrel 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 Farrel 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 many people have the name Farrel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.