Migel
Of Catalan origin, a contracted form of the name "Miguel" meaning "one who is like God".
Name Census estimates that about 1,527 living Americans carry the first name Migel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Migel today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Migel births was 1993 (52 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Migel. 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 Migel with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.5K
~ 1 in 224,463 Americans
Peak year
1993
52 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2021 SSA rank
#10,419
Tracked since 1920
Census
Migel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,336 people with the first name Migel, which placed it at #10,104 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
#10,104
National first-name rank
People counted
1.3K
1,336 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
89.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Migel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Migel is Hispanic at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and White (4.2%). 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 Migel 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 Migel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino89.0% · 1,189
- Black or African American4.8% · 64
- White4.2% · 56
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 14
- Two or more races0.5% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 6
Popularity
Migel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Migel from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 11 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 449 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
Migel 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 Migel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Migels live
The SSA's state-level files cover 5 states and territories. California, Texas, Illinois recorded the most babies named Migel, while Florida, Colorado, Illinois recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 148 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Migel
The given name Migel has its origins rooted in the ancient Germanic languages, particularly in the Old English and Old High German dialects. It is believed to have emerged around the 7th or 8th century AD, during the early medieval period. The name is derived from the Germanic root words "mīhil" or "mihhil," which translate to "great" or "mighty."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Migel can be found in the Codex Aureus, an 8th-century illuminated manuscript containing the Gospels in the Carolingian minuscule script. This manuscript, also known as the Golden Gospels, was commissioned by the Carolingian ruler Charlemagne and is now housed in the Schatzkammer (Treasury) of the Residenz in Munich, Germany.
In the 9th century, the name Migel gained prominence with the birth of Saint Michael the Archangel, one of the principal angelic warriors revered in Christian, Jewish, and Islamic traditions. The name Migel is closely associated with this powerful celestial figure, often depicted as a winged warrior wielding a sword and vanquishing evil.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Migel. One of the earliest recorded examples is Migel of Fulda (circa 770 - 842), a Benedictine monk and scholar who served as the head of the monastic school at Fulda Abbey in present-day Germany. He was renowned for his contributions to the preservation and dissemination of classical literature and Christian theology.
Another prominent historical figure was Migel I Rangabé (circa 770 - 844), a Byzantine noble and military leader who served as the Domestic of the Schools (a high-ranking military commander) under the Byzantine Emperors Leo V and Michael II. He played a crucial role in suppressing revolts and securing the throne for Michael II during a turbulent period in Byzantine history.
In the realm of literature, Migel de Cervantes (1547 - 1616), the renowned Spanish novelist and playwright, is widely celebrated for his masterpiece, Don Quixote. Regarded as one of the greatest works of fiction, Cervantes' magnum opus has had a profound impact on Western literature and culture.
Migel Faraday (1791 - 1867), the English scientist and physicist, made significant contributions to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. He is best known for his groundbreaking experiments and discoveries, including the principles of electromagnetic induction and the laws of electrolysis.
Finally, Migel de Unamuno (1864 - 1936), a Spanish philosopher, essayist, and novelist, was a prominent figure in the Generation of '98, a group of writers and intellectuals who sought to revitalize Spanish culture and society in the aftermath of the Spanish-American War.
People
Migel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Migel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Migel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Migel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,527 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Migel 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 224,463 US residents.
Is Migel a common name?
We classify Migel as "Rare". It ranks above 92.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,713 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Migel most popular?
The single biggest year for Migel was 1993, when 52 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Migel is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Migel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,336 people with the name Migel, or 0.44 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #10,104 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 Migel 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 Migel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Migel appears almost entirely male. Of the 1,327 people counted with this name, 99.2% 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 Migel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Migel is Hispanic at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.8%) and White (4.2%). 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 Migel most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Migel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (1,189 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 Migel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Migel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Migel 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 Migel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Migel 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 Migel 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 Migel as a first name?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.