Graciela
A feminine Spanish name meaning "graceful, elegant".
Name Census estimates that about 14,054 living Americans carry the first name Graciela. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Graciela today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Graciela births was 1998 (428 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Graciela. 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
14K
~ 1 in 24,388 Americans
Peak year
1998
428 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
1995 SSA rank
#1,943
Tracked since 1916
Gender
Gender distribution for Graciela
Out of the 16,244 babies given the name Graciela since 1880, 99.8% were registered as female. The name sits firmly on the female side of the spectrum, with only a handful of male registrations across the entire dataset.
Graciela as a male name
- Ranked #9,344 in 1995
- 5 male births in 1995
- Peak: 1971 (7 births)
Graciela as a female name
- Ranked #1,943 in 2024
- 102 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1998 (428 births)
Popularity
Graciela: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Graciela from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 2,687 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Graciela 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 Graciela during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gracielas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 28 states and territories. Texas, California, Illinois recorded the most babies named Graciela, while Utah, Pennsylvania, Nebraska recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 485 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Graciela
The given name Graciela has its origins in the Spanish language and culture. It is a feminine form of the Spanish name Graciel, which is derived from the Latin word "gratia," meaning grace or favor.
Graciela gained popularity during the medieval period in Spain and other Spanish-speaking regions. It was often used as a name for girls who were considered graceful or favored by God. The name may have also been influenced by the Latin word "gratus," meaning pleasing or agreeable.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Graciela can be found in the 13th-century literary work "El Libro de Buen Amor" by Juan Ruiz, Arcipreste de Hita. This work, which is a collection of poems and stories, includes references to a character named Graciela.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Graciela. One of the most famous was Graciela Naranjo (1916-2001), a Cuban singer and actress who was known for her performances in the genre of son cubano. Another notable Graciela was Graciela Iturbide (born 1942), a Mexican photographer renowned for her powerful black-and-white portraits and documentary photography.
In the literary world, Graciela Baquero (1935-2017) was a prominent Cuban poet and essayist who explored themes of exile, identity, and memory in her works. Graciela Montes (born 1947) is an acclaimed Argentine writer of children's literature, known for her imaginative storytelling and contributions to the genre.
Graciela Fernández Meijide (1927-2016) was an Argentine politician and activist who played a significant role in the fight for women's rights and gender equality in Argentina during the 20th century.
While the name Graciela has seen widespread use in Spanish-speaking countries, it has also gained popularity in other parts of the world, particularly among communities with Spanish cultural influences or connections.
People
Graciela + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Graciela 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
Graciela: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Graciela?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 14,054 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Graciela 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 24,388 US residents.
Is Graciela a common name?
We classify Graciela as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 16,244 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Graciela most popular?
The single biggest year for Graciela was 1998, when 428 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Graciela is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Graciela a female name?
Yes, 99.8% of people registered as Graciela 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.