Cristabel
A feminine name derived from Spanish/Portuguese and meaning "a bearer of Christ".
Name Census estimates that about 214 living Americans carry the first name Cristabel. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Cristabel today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cristabel births was 2004 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cristabel. 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
214
~ 1 in 1,601,656 Americans
Peak year
2004
11 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2022 SSA rank
#13,977
Tracked since 1979
Popularity
Cristabel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cristabel from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 76 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cristabel 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 Cristabel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Cristabels live
Origin
Meaning and history of Cristabel
The name Cristabel has its origins in the Latin language, derived from the combination of the words "Christus" (meaning Christ) and "bella" (meaning beautiful). It emerged during the early Christian era as a feminine name, often given to girls born around Christmas time or whose births were considered a blessing.
The earliest recorded use of the name can be traced back to the 12th century, appearing in various ecclesiastical records and manuscripts from England and parts of Continental Europe. It was particularly popular among the nobility and upper classes, who saw it as a way to express their devotion to Christianity and celebrate the birth of Christ.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Cristabel of Beaumont, a 12th-century English noblewoman who was a prominent figure in the court of King Henry II. Another notable figure was Cristabel de Corbie, a 13th-century French abbess and scholar who played a significant role in the intellectual and spiritual life of her time.
In the realm of literature, the name gained prominence through Samuel Taylor Coleridge's unfinished poem "Christabel," published in 1816. The poem's central character, a young woman named Christabel, became a symbol of innocence and purity, contributing to the name's enduring appeal and popularity.
Other notable historical figures named Cristabel include:
1. Cristabel Pankhurst (1881-1960), a British suffragette and co-founder of the Women's Social and Political Union.
2. Cristabel Burniston (1918-2006), an Australian artist and sculptor known for her modernist works.
3. Cristabel Chamberlayne (1929-2017), a British author and historian, renowned for her biographies of notable figures.
4. Cristabel Ennor (1909-1996), a New Zealand medical researcher and one of the first female doctors in her country.
5. Cristabel Pardo (born 1976), a Spanish actress and model, known for her roles in various television series and films.
The name Cristabel has maintained a consistent presence throughout history, embodying a blend of religious symbolism, literary significance, and cultural diversity. Its enduring appeal lies in its melodic sound, rich heritage, and associations with beauty, purity, and devotion.
People
Cristabel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cristabel 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
Cristabel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cristabel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 214 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cristabel 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 1,601,656 US residents.
Is Cristabel a common name?
We classify Cristabel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 75.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 220 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cristabel most popular?
The single biggest year for Cristabel was 2004, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cristabel is about 26 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Cristabel a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Cristabel in the SSA data are female. 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.