Buel
A masculine name derived from the French surname "Dubois" meaning "of the woods".
Name Census estimates that about 222 living Americans carry the first name Buel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Buel today is around 79 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Buel births was 1922 (65 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Buel. 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
- • The typical person named Buel is about 79 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Buels were born before 1957.
People living today
222
~ 1 in 1,543,938 Americans
Peak year
1922
65 babies that year
Average age
79
years old
1972 SSA rank
#5,076
Tracked since 1888
Popularity
Buel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Buel from the 1880s through to the 1970s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 397 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Buel 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 Buel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Buels live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Kentucky, Missouri, Arkansas recorded the most babies named Buel, while North Carolina, Oklahoma, Texas recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 35 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Buel
The given name Buel is believed to have originated from the Old English language, with roots tracing back to the Anglo-Saxon period in England during the 5th to 11th centuries. The name is thought to be derived from the Old English words "buel" or "buel-le," which meant "noble" or "distinguished."
In its earliest recorded instances, the name was often spelled in various ways, including "Buell," "Buehl," and "Buele." These variations likely emerged due to regional dialects and the lack of standardized spelling conventions during that time period. Some scholars suggest that the name may have been influenced by the Old French word "buille," meaning "stalk" or "stem," potentially referring to a person's sturdy or upright character.
While the name does not appear to be directly referenced in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it was borne by several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest recorded examples is Buel Lanphier (1676-1748), an American colonial settler and landowner from Massachusetts. Another early bearer of the name was Buel W. Patch (1776-1865), an American lawyer and politician who served as the 13th Lieutenant Governor of Vermont.
In the 19th century, Buel Hinsdale (1836-1900) was an American educator and author who served as the president of Hiram College in Ohio. Buel Preston Jr. (1842-1930) was a renowned American lawyer and politician who served as the 40th Governor of Kentucky from 1899 to 1900. Additionally, Buel J. Tompkins (1850-1928) was an American businessman and banker who co-founded the First National Bank of Ogden in Utah.
While the name Buel has faded in popularity in recent times, it carries a rich historical legacy and a connection to the Anglo-Saxon roots of the English language. Its meaning, derived from the concepts of nobility and distinction, reflects the significance and esteem bestowed upon its bearers throughout the centuries.
People
Buel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Buel 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
Buel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Buel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 222 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Buel 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 1,543,938 US residents.
Is Buel a common name?
We classify Buel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,135 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Buel most popular?
The single biggest year for Buel was 1922, when 65 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Buel is about 79 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Buel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Buel 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.