Fadil
A boy's name of Arabic origin meaning "virtue" or "excellence".
Name Census estimates that about 143 living Americans carry the first name Fadil. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Fadil today is around 16 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Fadil births was 2014 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Fadil. 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 Fadil with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
143
~ 1 in 2,396,883 Americans
Peak year
2014
10 babies that year
Average age
16
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,235
Tracked since 1973
Census
Fadil in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 621 people with the first name Fadil, which placed it at #17,644 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#17,644
National first-name rank
People counted
621
621 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
77.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fadil
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Fadil is White at 77.6%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Fadil described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Fadil at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.6% · 482
- Black or African American15.3% · 95
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.3% · 33
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 5
- Two or more races0.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Popularity
Fadil: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Fadil from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 71 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Fadil remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Fadil 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 Fadil during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Fadil
The name Fadil is of Arabic origin, derived from the root word "fadl," which means "grace," "virtue," or "excellence." It is believed to have been in use since the early days of Islam, as it reflects the Islamic values of righteousness and moral uprightness.
The name Fadil is commonly found in the Arab world, particularly in countries like Egypt, Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine. It has also gained popularity in other parts of the world with significant Muslim populations, such as South Asia and parts of Africa.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Fadil can be found in Islamic literature and historical accounts. For instance, there are references to individuals named Fadil in the writings of renowned scholars and poets from the medieval period.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Fadil. One such individual was Fadil ibn Yahya (died 818 CE), a prominent Arab mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of trigonometry and the calculation of planetary movements.
Another renowned person with the name Fadil was Fadil al-Aydarus (1787-1854), a Yemeni scholar and Sufi mystic who played a pivotal role in spreading Islamic teachings and establishing educational institutions in his native country.
In the literary realm, Fadil al-Tawil (1891-1973) was a prominent Palestinian poet and essayist who wrote extensively about the struggles of the Palestinian people and their quest for independence. His works are widely celebrated and have left a lasting impact on Arabic literature.
Fadil Husayn (1888-1949), an Iraqi writer and journalist, was also a prominent figure in the early 20th century. He was known for his advocacy of Arab nationalism and his efforts to promote Arabic language and culture.
Additionally, Fadil al-Qasim (1927-2010) was a renowned Iraqi poet and activist who played a significant role in the Arab nationalist movement. His poetry often reflected themes of resistance, freedom, and social justice, resonating with people across the Arab world.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who have carried the name Fadil throughout history, each leaving their mark in various fields and contributing to the rich cultural tapestry of the Arab and Islamic world.
People
Fadil + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Fadil as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Fadil: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Fadil?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 143 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Fadil 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 2,396,883 US residents.
Is Fadil a common name?
We classify Fadil as "Very Rare". It ranks above 69.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 145 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Fadil most popular?
The single biggest year for Fadil was 2014, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Fadil is about 16 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Fadil in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 621 people with the name Fadil, or 0.21 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,644 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Fadil in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Fadil?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Fadil appears almost entirely male. Of the 623 people counted with this name, 99.7% were male and only a very small share were female. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Fadil?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Fadil is White at 77.6%. The next largest groups are Black (15.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.3%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Fadil most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Fadil in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.6% (482 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
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 Fadil in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Fadil a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Fadil 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 Fadil still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Fadil 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 Fadil 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.
How many people have the name Fadil?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.