Castiel
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "my cover is God".
Name Census estimates that about 3,667 living Americans carry the first name Castiel. It is a predominantly male name (99.1% of registrations). The average person named Castiel today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Castiel births was 2019 (336 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Castiel. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Castiel with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Castiel is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 8 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
3.7K
~ 1 in 93,470 Americans
Peak year
2019
336 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#816
Tracked since 2009
Gender
Gender distribution for Castiel
Out of the 3,693 babies given the name Castiel since 1880, 99.1% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Castiel as a male name
- Ranked #816 in 2024
- 306 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2019 (336 births)
Castiel as a female name
- Ranked #15,584 in 2020
- 5 female births in 2020
- Peak: 2016 (7 births)
Popularity
Castiel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Castiel from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 2,267 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Castiel remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Castiel 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 Castiel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Castiels live
The SSA's state-level files cover 38 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Castiel, while South Carolina, Rhode Island, Nebraska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 76 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Castiel
The name Castiel has its origins in the ancient Enochian language, which was a mystical language developed in the late 16th century by John Dee and Edward Kelley. The name is believed to be derived from the Enochian word "Cassi-el," which roughly translates to "the cover or veil of God." This language was supposedly revealed to Dee and Kelley by angels during their occult experiments and was intended to be used for communicating with supernatural beings.
While the Enochian language itself was not widely used or documented in historical records, the name Castiel gained popularity in certain esoteric and occult circles due to its angelic connotations. It was often associated with the concept of divine protection and guidance, as well as the unveiling of hidden knowledge or mysteries.
The earliest recorded use of the name Castiel can be traced back to the 17th century, when it appeared in some occult texts and grimoires, such as the Almadel and the Goetia. In these works, Castiel was sometimes referred to as an angel or a powerful supernatural entity.
One of the earliest notable figures to bear the name Castiel was Castiel Maldonado (1628-1701), a Spanish alchemist and occultist who authored several treatises on the subject of hermetic philosophy and the occult sciences. His works were influential in certain esoteric circles during the 17th and 18th centuries.
Another historical figure with the name Castiel was Castiel von Wüllersdorf (1768-1842), an Austrian military officer and writer who served in the Napoleonic Wars. He is known for his memoirs, which provide valuable insights into the military campaigns and strategies of the time.
In the 19th century, Castiel Bisson (1823-1892) was a French painter and illustrator who gained recognition for his depictions of historical and mythological scenes. His works were exhibited at the Paris Salon and can be found in various art collections across Europe.
Moving into the 20th century, Castiel Novarro (1901-1968) was a Mexican-American actor and artist who appeared in several films during the silent and early talkie eras of Hollywood. He is particularly remembered for his roles in films like "The Arab" and "The Firebrand."
Finally, one of the more recent figures with the name Castiel was Castiel Álvarez (1942-2018), a renowned Cuban painter and sculptor known for his abstract and surrealist works. His art was exhibited in galleries and museums across Latin America and the United States, and he was recognized as one of the leading figures in the Cuban avant-garde art movement.
People
Castiel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Castiel 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
Castiel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Castiel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 3,667 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Castiel 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 93,470 US residents.
Is Castiel a common name?
We classify Castiel as "Rare". It ranks above 95.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,693 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Castiel most popular?
The single biggest year for Castiel was 2019, when 336 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Castiel is about 8 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 Castiel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Castiel a male name?
Yes, 99.1% of people registered as Castiel 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 Castiel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Castiel 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 Castiel 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 have Castiel as a first name?
If you just want to know how many people share the name Castiel, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.