First Name
280k
in the U.S.
since 1880
Last Name
<100
in the U.S.
in 2010
Girls
Boys
On This Page
  1. Related Names
  2. Pronunciation
  3. Meanings and Origins
  4. Notable Persons Named Ethel
  5. Notable Persons With the Last Name Ethel
  6. Popularity by Year and Gender
  7. Regional Popularity
  8. Fun Facts
  9. What Ethels Have Visited This Page?
  10. Name Poster

How to Pronounce Ethel

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Meaning and Origin

What does the name Ethel mean? Find out below.

Origin and Meaning of Ethel

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Webster's Unabridged Dictionary
adjective Eth"el
Noble.

Etymology: AS. eðele æðele. See Atheling

Wiktionary

Short form of names of Old English origin beginning with Ethel-, æþel (“noble”). First used in the 19th century. Cognate to the Germanic Adela and Adele.

  1. A female given name, popular at the turn of the 20th century.
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Notable Persons Named Ethel

Ethel Kennedy

Ethel was given the name Ethel Skakel by her parent George Skakel on April 11th, 1928 in Chicago.

Popularity:
Ethel Merman

Ethel Merman was an actress and singer. She was most prominent from 1930 to 1982. Ethel was given the name Ethel Agnes Zimmermann on January 16th, 1908 in Astoria, Queens, New York City, US. She left this life on February 15th, 1984.

Popularity:
Ethel Waters

Ethel Waters was a jazz, gospel, blues, and gospel music actor and singing. She plays Vocals. Her career lasted from 1918 to 1977. Ethel was born on October 31st, 1896 in , U.S. She died on September 1st, 1977.

Popularity:
Ethel Barrymore

Ethel Barrymore was an actress. She was most prominent from 1895 to 1957. Ethel was given the name Ethel Mae Blythe by her parents Maurice Barrymore and Georgiana Drew on August 15th, 1879 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S. She left this life on June 18th, 1959.

Popularity:
Ruby Keeler

Ruby Keeler was an actress, dancer, and singer. She was most active from 1923 to 1989. Ruby was given the name Ethel Ruby Keeler on August 25th, 1909 in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia. She left this life on February 28th, 1993.

Popularity:
Ethel Muggs

Ethel Muggs is a fictional character.

Popularity:
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Notable Persons With the Last Name Ethel

Agnes Ethel

Agnes was born on May 1st, 1846 in New York City. Agnes is also known as Ethel Agnes Tracy. She passed away on May 26th, 1903.

Popularity:
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How popular is the baby name Ethel in the U.S.?

Click Here to Show Chart Data
Year Total Babies Born Girls Born Boys Born Ranking
1880 639 633 6 #38 girl name
1881 793 788 5 #25 girl name
1882 989 989 0 #24 girl name
1883 1,132 1,132 0 #20 girl name
1884 1,393 1,386 7 #18 girl name
1885 1,508 1,495 13 #15 girl name
1886 1,705 1,699 6 #15 girl name
1887 1,917 1,907 10 #11 girl name
1888 2,386 2,374 12 #9 girl name
1889 2,477 2,463 14 #8 girl name
1890 2,726 2,718 8 #7 girl name
1891 2,698 2,689 9 #7 girl name
1892 3,052 3,035 17 #8 girl name
1893 3,131 3,119 12 #8 girl name
1894 3,298 3,287 11 #7 girl name
1895 3,406 3,391 15 #8 girl name
1896 3,514 3,502 12 #6 girl name
1897 3,199 3,182 17 #8 girl name
1898 3,555 3,531 24 #8 girl name
1899 3,014 2,999 15 #9 girl name
1900 3,916 3,896 20 #8 girl name
1901 3,083 3,067 16 #9 girl name
1902 3,314 3,295 19 #9 girl name
1903 3,277 3,257 20 #9 girl name
1904 3,313 3,296 17 #11 girl name
1905 3,415 3,401 14 #12 girl name
1906 3,527 3,511 16 #12 girl name
1907 3,710 3,698 12 #12 girl name
1908 3,808 3,786 22 #12 girl name
1909 3,686 3,661 25 #13 girl name
1910 4,179 4,146 33 #13 girl name
1911 4,158 4,141 17 #15 girl name
1912 5,091 5,073 18 #18 girl name
1913 5,396 5,369 27 #20 girl name
1914 6,230 6,204 26 #21 girl name
1915 7,409 7,379 30 #23 girl name
1916 7,625 7,601 24 #25 girl name
1917 7,901 7,864 37 #24 girl name
1918 8,111 8,076 35 #28 girl name
1919 7,850 7,810 40 #28 girl name
1920 7,891 7,868 23 #30 girl name
1921 7,635 7,603 32 #32 girl name
1922 7,270 7,245 25 #32 girl name
1923 6,572 6,541 31 #38 girl name
1924 6,625 6,584 41 #39 girl name
1925 6,208 6,175 33 #43 girl name
1926 5,889 5,859 30 #41 girl name
1927 5,529 5,486 43 #47 girl name
1928 4,971 4,923 48 #55 girl name
1929 4,549 4,517 32 #56 girl name
1930 4,137 4,100 37 #65 girl name
1931 3,793 3,760 33 #67 girl name
1932 3,629 3,607 22 #66 girl name
1933 3,253 3,218 35 #71 girl name
1934 3,209 3,179 30 #78 girl name
1935 3,031 3,004 27 #82 girl name
1936 2,748 2,731 17 #90 girl name
1937 2,787 2,764 23 #88 girl name
1938 2,753 2,726 27 #94 girl name
1939 2,521 2,493 28 #100 girl name
1940 2,386 2,374 12
1941 2,286 2,270 16
1942 2,218 2,203 15
1943 2,228 2,218 10
1944 2,062 2,054 8
1945 1,827 1,817 10
1946 1,948 1,936 12
1947 2,091 2,083 8
1948 1,878 1,872 6
1949 1,762 1,753 9
1950 1,611 1,602 9
1951 1,500 1,493 7
1952 1,412 1,399 13
1953 1,282 1,282 0
1954 1,181 1,175 6
1955 1,110 1,101 9
1956 1,083 1,076 7
1957 886 881 5
1958 856 856 0
1959 682 682 0
1960 730 730 0
1961 632 632 0
1962 587 582 5
1963 531 523 8
1964 517 517 0
1965 445 440 5
1966 371 364 7
1967 341 341 0
1968 288 283 5
1969 275 275 0
1970 227 227 0
1971 218 218 0
1972 180 180 0
1973 181 181 0
1974 130 130 0
1975 149 149 0
1976 114 114 0
1977 106 106 0
1978 106 106 0
1979 87 87 0
1980 75 75 0
1981 63 63 0
1982 82 82 0
1983 70 70 0
1984 48 48 0
1985 54 54 0
1986 46 46 0
1987 29 29 0
1988 30 30 0
1989 51 51 0
1990 46 46 0
1991 36 36 0
1992 33 33 0
1993 28 28 0
1994 22 22 0
1995 25 25 0
1996 29 29 0
1997 14 14 0
1998 18 18 0
1999 23 23 0
2000 14 14 0
2001 19 19 0
2002 29 29 0
2003 24 24 0
2004 23 23 0
2005 20 20 0
2006 13 13 0
2007 17 17 0
2008 13 13 0
2009 15 15 0
2010 14 14 0
2011 14 14 0
2012 15 15 0
2013 14 14 0
2014 21 21 0
2015 12 12 0
2016 25 25 0
2017 28 28 0
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Where is the name Ethel popular?

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Popularity of Ethel as a first name

The map shows the relative popularity of the name Ethel as a first name in each of the states. See other popular names in Mississippi, South Carolina, or Alabama.

Popularity of Ethel as a last name

The map shows the absolute popularity of the name Ethel as a last name in each of the states. See other popular names in Oklahoma, Texas, or Ohio.

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Common last names for Ethel

  • Smith
  • Johnson
  • Brown
  • Williams
  • Jones
  • Miller
  • Davis
  • Anderson
  • Wilson
  • Taylor
  • Moore
  • Thompson
  • Thomas
  • White
  • Jackson
  • Clark
  • Martin
  • Harris
  • Lewis
  • Hall

Fun Facts about the name Ethel

  • What name lists does Ethel rank for?
    #133Most Popular Girl Name
    #10Old-Fashioned Girl Names
    #29Girl Names Unique to Louisiana
  • How Popular is the name Ethel? Ethel is the 261st most popular name of all time.
  • How many people with the first name Ethel have been born in the United States? From 1880 to 2017, the Social Security Administration has recorded 280,187 babies born with the first name Ethel in the United States. That's more than enough people named Ethel to occupy the territory of French Polynesia (France) with an estimated population of 277,000 (as of July 1, 2012).
  • What year were 5 or more babies first named Ethel? The name was first given to 5 or more babies in the year 1880 when it was given as a first name to 639 new born babies.
  • When was Ethel first recorded in the United States? The oldest recorded birth by the Social Security Administration for the first name Ethel is Friday, August 10th, 1866.
  • What year had the most people named Ethel born? The highest recorded use of the first name Ethel was in 1918 with a total of 8,076 babies. That's a lot of babies named Ethel!
  • Random Ethel Factoid: According to the 1912 U.S. Social Security Administration data, the first name Ethel ranks 20th in popularity as a baby girl's name in Delaware. Imagine that, 12 babies in Delaware have the same name as you in 1912.
  • Weird things about the name Ethel: Your name in reverse order is Lehte. A random rearrangement of the letters in your name (anagram) will give Theel. How do you pronounce that?
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What Ethels Have Visited This Page?

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Name poster for Ethel

Name poster for Ethel(click to save the high quality version)

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Most Popular Names

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All Name Lists

  • Sources:
  • U.S. Census Bureau: Frequently Occurring Surnames from the Census 2000 (public domain).
  • U.S. Social Security Administration: Popular Baby Names, Death Master File (public domain).
  • 1913 Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary via the Collaborative International Dictionary of English (License)
  • Wiktionary: Titles and License.
  • Notable persons via Wikipedia: Titles and License. Click each image for the attribution information.