Gal
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "wave" or "ripple".
Name Census estimates that about 365 living Americans carry the first name Gal. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 63.1% of registrations being female. The average person named Gal today is around 27 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gal births was 1996 (21 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gal. 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
365
~ 1 in 939,053 Americans
Peak year
1996
21 babies that year
Average age
27
years old
2006 SSA rank
#11,093
Tracked since 1947
Gender
Gender distribution for Gal
Gal is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 388 total registrations, 143 (36.9%) were male and 245 (63.1%) were female.
Gal as a male name
- Ranked #11,093 in 2006
- 6 male births in 2006
- Peak: 1996 (14 births)
Gal as a female name
- Ranked #11,401 in 2024
- 8 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2022 (16 births)
Popularity
Gal: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gal from the 1940s through to the 2020s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 128 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1990s peak, Gal remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gal 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 Gal during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gals live
Origin
Meaning and history of Gal
The name Gal has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture. It is a short form of the Hebrew name Galit, which means "wave" or "ripple." This name has been used in the region of ancient Judea and Israel since biblical times.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Gal can be found in the Book of Genesis, where it is mentioned as the name of one of the sons of Eber, a descendant of Shem. In the biblical account, Gal is listed among the ancestors of the Israelites.
Throughout the centuries, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Gal. One of the most famous was Gal Gadot, an Israeli actress, model, and producer born in 1985. She is best known for her portrayal of Wonder Woman in the DC Extended Universe films.
Another notable figure was Gal Sone, a Jewish poet and philosopher who lived in the 11th century CE. He was born in Malaga, Spain, and is known for his contributions to the Golden Age of Jewish culture in Andalusia.
In the field of science, Gal Hirsch (1958-2018) was an Israeli astrophysicist and astronomer. He made significant contributions to the study of black holes and the early universe.
Gal Gadot-Perez (born 1978) is an Israeli politician and former member of the Knesset, serving from 2013 to 2015. She was a member of the Yesh Atid party and focused on issues related to education and social affairs.
Gal Mekel (born 1988) is an Israeli professional basketball player who has played in various leagues, including the NBA, where he briefly played for the Dallas Mavericks in the 2013-2014 season.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Gal, which has its roots in the ancient Hebrew language and culture.
People
Gal + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gal as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gal: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gal?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 365 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gal 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 939,053 US residents.
Is Gal a common name?
We classify Gal as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 388 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gal most popular?
The single biggest year for Gal was 1996, when 21 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gal is about 27 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gal a female name?
Yes, 63.1% of people registered as Gal 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.