Mabel
A feminine name referring to loveliness and beauty, originating from Latin.
Name Census estimates that about 19,274 living Americans carry the first name Mabel. It sits at #222 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Mabel today is around 38 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Mabel births was 1915 (3,696 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Mabel. 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 Mabel with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Mabel is used almost entirely for girls, the SSA data does show 409 boys registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
19K
~ 1 in 17,783 Americans
Peak year
1915
3,696 babies that year
Average age
38
years old
1940 SSA rank
#222
Tracked since 1880
Census
Mabel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 23,474 people with the first name Mabel, which placed it at #1,445 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
#1,445
National first-name rank
People counted
23K
23,474 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
7.8
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
50.5% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mabel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mabel is White at 50.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (27.3%) and Black (12.2%). 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 Mabel 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 Mabel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White50.5% · 11,850
- Hispanic or Latino27.3% · 6,406
- Black or African American12.2% · 2,854
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.6% · 1,553
- Two or more races2.3% · 547
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 264
Gender
Gender distribution for Mabel
Out of the 141,163 babies given the name Mabel since 1880, 99.7% 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.
Mabel as a male name
- Ranked #3,763 in 1940
- 5 male births in 1940
- Peak: 1917 (17 births)
Mabel as a female name
- Ranked #222 in 2024
- 1,380 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1915 (3,683 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mabel appears almost entirely female. Of the 23,468 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male.
Popularity
Mabel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Mabel from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 30,890 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mabel 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 Mabel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Mabels live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. Pennsylvania, New York, North Carolina recorded the most babies named Mabel, while Nevada, Alaska, Wyoming recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,570 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Mabel
The name Mabel has its origins in the Latin language, derived from the word "amabilis," which translates to "lovable" or "endearing." It gained popularity during the Middle Ages, particularly in regions where Latin was widely spoken, such as parts of Europe and the Mediterranean.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mabel can be traced back to the 12th century. A notable figure bearing this name was Mabel of Gloucester, a Welsh princess and daughter of Robert Fitzhamon, who lived from around 1090 to 1157. She played a significant role in the Norman conquest of Wales and was renowned for her influential position within the Welsh nobility.
In the 13th century, Mabel de Beaumont, a noblewoman from England, gained prominence. Born around 1210, she was a member of the powerful Beaumont family and held substantial landholdings in the counties of Lincolnshire and Leicestershire. Her name appeared in various historical records of the time, reflecting the growing popularity of the name among the aristocratic classes.
During the Renaissance period, the name Mabel gained further recognition with the birth of Mabel Plantagenet, a member of the English royal family. Born in 1510, she was the daughter of Sir Richard Plantagenet and held a respected position within the Tudor court. Her life and legacy were documented in various historical accounts, further solidifying the name's association with nobility and prominence.
In the 17th century, Mabel Hick, an English Quaker minister and influential figure in the early Quaker movement, made her mark on history. Born in 1614, she traveled extensively, spreading the Quaker teachings and advocating for religious freedom. Her writings and speeches have been preserved, providing valuable insights into the religious landscape of that era.
Another notable figure bearing the name Mabel was Mabel Normand, an American silent film actress, screenwriter, and one of the most popular comedic performers of the early 20th century. Born in 1892, she appeared in numerous films and was known for her collaborations with influential directors like Charlie Chaplin and Mack Sennett. Normand's contributions to the burgeoning film industry were widely recognized and celebrated during her lifetime.
While the name Mabel has its roots in antiquity, it has continued to be used throughout various historical periods, transcending cultural and geographical boundaries. These examples illustrate the enduring appeal and significance of the name, which has been borne by individuals from diverse backgrounds and eras, each leaving an indelible mark on their respective fields and societies.
People
Mabel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Mabel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Mabel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Mabel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 19,274 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Mabel 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 17,783 US residents.
Is Mabel a common name?
We classify Mabel as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 141,163 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Mabel most popular?
The single biggest year for Mabel was 1915, when 3,696 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Mabel is about 38 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Mabel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 23,474 people with the name Mabel, or 7.77 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #1,445 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 Mabel 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 Mabel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Mabel appears almost entirely female. Of the 23,468 people counted with this name, 99.7% were female and only a very small share were male. 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 Mabel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Mabel is White at 50.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (27.3%) and Black (12.2%). 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 Mabel most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Mabel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 50.5% (11,850 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 Mabel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Mabel a female name?
Yes, 99.7% of people registered as Mabel 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 Mabel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Mabel 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 Mabel 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 Mabel?
If you just want to know how many people have the name Mabel, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.