Basel
A masculine name of Germanic origin meaning "crowned with laurel".
Name Census estimates that about 430 living Americans carry the first name Basel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Basel today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Basel births was 2000 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Basel. 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
430
~ 1 in 797,103 Americans
Peak year
2000
21 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#7,286
Tracked since 1914
Popularity
Basel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Basel from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 123 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Basel remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Basel 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 Basel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Basels live
Origin
Meaning and history of Basel
Basel is a given name with origins dating back to ancient times. The name is derived from the Greek word "basileus," which means "king" or "ruler." It is believed to have first appeared in the Hellenistic period, which lasted from the 4th to the 1st century BC.
The name Basel has its roots in the Greek language and culture, but it has also been used in various other cultures and regions throughout history. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the writings of the ancient Greek historian Plutarch, who lived in the 1st century AD.
In the Middle Ages, the name Basel gained popularity in Eastern Europe and the Slavic regions. During this period, it was often associated with royalty and nobility. One notable figure from this era was Basel I, also known as Vasily I Dmitriyevich, who was the Grand Prince of Moscow from 1389 to 1425.
As the name spread across different cultures and regions, its spelling and pronunciation adapted to local languages. In some cases, it was modified to include different suffixes or prefixes. For instance, in Russian, the name is often spelled as "Vasily" or "Vasiliy."
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Basel. One of the most famous was Basel the Great, a 4th-century bishop and theologian who was one of the most influential figures in the early Christian Church. Another notable figure was Basel III, the Byzantine Emperor who ruled from 976 to 1025 AD.
In the Islamic world, the name Basel has been used as well. One example is Basil I, also known as Basil the Macedonian, who was the Byzantine Emperor from 867 to 886 AD. He is credited with founding the Macedonian dynasty and playing a significant role in the revival of the Byzantine Empire.
Other notable figures with the name Basel include Basel Ghattas, a 20th-century Arab Christian writer and intellectual from Lebanon, and Basel al-Asad, the eldest son of the late Syrian President Hafez al-Assad.
While the name Basel has been used across various cultures and regions throughout history, it is important to note that its popularity and usage have varied over time and across different geographic areas.
People
Basel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Basel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Basel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Basel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 430 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Basel 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 797,103 US residents.
Is Basel a common name?
We classify Basel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 541 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Basel most popular?
The single biggest year for Basel was 2000, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Basel is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Basel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Basel 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.
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.