Cabral
A Portuguese surname transferred to masculine given name meaning "the top of the mountain".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Cabral. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Cabral today is around 48 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cabral births was 1974 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cabral. 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 Cabral. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1974
5 babies that year
Average age
48
years old
1974 SSA rank
#5,307
Tracked since 1974
Popularity
Cabral: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Cabral 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 Cabral during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1970s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Cabral
The name Cabral has its origins in the Portuguese language. It is derived from the Latin word "capreolus" which means "wild goat" or "roebuck." The name first emerged in the 12th century in Portugal, where it was used as a surname for those who lived in areas with an abundance of wild goats.
Over time, Cabral evolved into a given name in its own right. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cabral can be found in the chronicles of the 15th-century Portuguese explorer Pedro Álvares Cabral, who is credited with the discovery of Brazil in 1500. He was born around 1467 in the town of Belmonte, Portugal, and his voyage to the New World was a pivotal moment in the Age of Discovery.
Another notable figure in history who bore the name Cabral was the 16th-century Portuguese missionary and Jesuit, Nuno Rodrigues Cabral. He was born in 1519 and traveled to India and Japan, where he played a significant role in the spread of Christianity in those regions.
In the 17th century, the name Cabral was associated with the Portuguese explorer and governor of Brazil, Pedro de Almeida Cabral, who was born in 1619. He played a crucial role in the colonization and development of the Brazilian territory.
Moving forward to the 19th century, we find Luís Cabral, a prominent Portuguese writer and journalist who was born in 1868. He is best known for his contributions to the literary movement known as "Neogarrettismo," which aimed to revive the romantic ideals of the 19th-century Portuguese writer Almeida Garrett.
In the 20th century, the name Cabral gained international recognition through the figure of Amílcar Cabral, a renowned African political leader and revolutionary who fought for the independence of Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde from Portuguese colonial rule. He was born in 1924 and was assassinated in 1973, but his legacy as a champion of anti-colonialism and national liberation remains strong.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Cabral, a name with rich historical roots that trace back to the Portuguese language and culture.
People
Cabral + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cabral as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cabral: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cabral?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cabral 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 Cabral a common name?
We classify Cabral 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 Cabral most popular?
The single biggest year for Cabral was 1974, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cabral is about 48 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 Cabral in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cabral a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cabral 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 Cabral still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cabral 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 Cabral 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 Cabral?
You can see how many people share the name Cabral on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.