Angelou
A feminine given name of Greek origins meaning "messenger" or "messenger angel".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Angelou. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Angelou today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Angelou births was 2014 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Angelou. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Angelou. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2014
5 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2014 SSA rank
#12,222
Tracked since 2014
Popularity
Angelou: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Angelou 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 Angelou during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Angelou
The name Angelou is derived from the Greek word "angelos," which means "messenger" or "angel." It is believed to have originated in ancient Greece, where it was used as a name for both men and women.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Angelou can be found in the writings of Aristotle, who lived in the 4th century BC. He mentioned a philosopher named Angelou who was a student of Plato.
In the Christian tradition, Angelou was sometimes used as a name for those who dedicated their lives to spreading the word of God. One of the most notable figures with this name was Angelou of Palestine, who lived in the 5th century AD and was known for his missionary work in the region.
During the Middle Ages, the name Angelou became more commonly associated with women, particularly in Italy and France. One notable figure from this period was Angelou de Foligno, a 13th-century Italian mystic and author who wrote about her spiritual experiences.
In the Renaissance period, the name Angelou was often used by artists and writers as a reference to the angelic or heavenly qualities of their subjects or works. One example is the Italian painter Angelou Bronzino, who lived from 1503 to 1572 and was known for his portraits of the Medici family.
Another notable figure with the name Angelou was the French philosopher and writer Angelou Silesio, who lived from 1624 to 1677 and wrote extensively on mysticism and spirituality.
In more recent times, the name Angelou has been popularized by the American poet and civil rights activist Maya Angelou, who was born in 1928 and passed away in 2014. Her works, such as "I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings," have had a significant impact on literature and social justice movements.
People
Angelou + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Angelou 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
Angelou: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Angelou?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Angelou 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Angelou a common name?
We classify Angelou as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Angelou most popular?
The single biggest year for Angelou was 2014, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Angelou is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Angelou in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Angelou a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Angelou 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 Angelou still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Angelou 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 Angelou 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Angelou?
Find out how many people share the name Angelou on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.