Rafaela
A feminine name derived from the Hebrew name Rafael, meaning "God has healed".
Name Census estimates that about 2,085 living Americans carry the first name Rafaela. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rafaela today is around 37 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rafaela births was 2011 (60 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rafaela. 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
2.1K
~ 1 in 164,391 Americans
Peak year
2011
60 babies that year
Average age
37
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,102
Tracked since 1887
Popularity
Rafaela: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rafaela from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 437 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Rafaela remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rafaela 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 Rafaela during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rafaelas live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. Texas, California, New York recorded the most babies named Rafaela, while Illinois, New Mexico, Massachusetts recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 239 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rafaela
The name Rafaela is a feminine form of the Hebrew name Rafael, which means "God has healed" or "God's healing power." It has roots in the Old Testament book of Tobit, where the archangel Raphael is mentioned.
Rafaela is a popular name in Spanish-speaking countries, particularly in Spain, Portugal, and Latin America. It is believed that the name became more widely used after the Spanish Golden Age of the 16th and 17th centuries, when the cult of the archangel Raphael gained popularity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rafaela can be found in the works of the Spanish playwright Lope de Vega (1562-1635), who included a character named Rafaela in his play "La gallarda toledana." Another notable historical figure with this name was Rafaela Herrera (1819-1904), a Spanish educator and pioneer of women's education in Spain.
In the art world, Rafaela Farina (1831-1904) was an Italian painter and one of the first women to be admitted to the prestigious Accademia di Belle Arti di Venezia (Venice Academy of Fine Arts).
Moving beyond Europe, Rafaela Padilla (1853-1919) was a Mexican poet and activist who fought for women's rights and education in her country.
In more recent times, Rafaela Pimentel (1906-1989) was a renowned Brazilian actress and singer, known for her performances in the popular Brazilian musical theater genre of "teatro de revista."
Another notable figure with the name Rafaela was Rafaela Aparicio (1930-2021), a Spanish flamenco dancer and choreographer who helped popularize the art form around the world.
These are just a few examples of historical figures who have carried the name Rafaela, each leaving their mark in various fields and contributing to the rich cultural tapestry associated with this beautiful name.
People
Rafaela + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rafaela as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rafaela: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rafaela?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 2,085 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rafaela 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 164,391 US residents.
Is Rafaela a common name?
We classify Rafaela as "Rare". It ranks above 93.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,456 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rafaela most popular?
The single biggest year for Rafaela was 2011, when 60 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rafaela is about 37 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rafaela a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rafaela 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.