Rafeal
Name of Hebrew origin meaning "God has healed" or "Divine healer".
Name Census estimates that about 870 living Americans carry the first name Rafeal. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Rafeal today is around 39 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rafeal births was 1989 (43 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rafeal. 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
870
~ 1 in 393,971 Americans
Peak year
1989
43 babies that year
Average age
39
years old
2020 SSA rank
#11,663
Tracked since 1930
Popularity
Rafeal: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rafeal from the 1930s through to the 2020s, spanning 9 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 346 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rafeal 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 Rafeal during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rafeals live
The SSA's state-level files cover 7 states and territories. Georgia, Texas, California recorded the most babies named Rafeal, while Louisiana, Illinois, Michigan recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 10 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rafeal
The name Rafeal originated from the Hebrew language and culture, with its roots traced back to ancient times. It is a variant spelling of the name Raphael, derived from the Hebrew name "Rafa'el," which means "God has healed" or "God's healing."
The name has a strong connection to Jewish and Christian traditions. In the Hebrew Bible, Raphael is mentioned as one of the seven archangels, tasked with healing and protecting travelers. The book of Tobit, considered canonical by Catholics and Orthodox Christians, features Raphael as a prominent character who guides and protects the young Tobiah on his journey.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rafeal can be found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of ancient Jewish texts dating back to the 3rd century BCE. The name also appears in various medieval Jewish and Christian texts, including the Talmud and the works of the renowned Jewish philosopher Maimonides.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Rafeal. One of the most famous was Rafeal Sanzio (1483-1520), an Italian Renaissance artist renowned for his masterpieces, including "The School of Athens" and the frescoes in the Vatican's Stanza della Segnatura. Another prominent figure was Rafeal Alberti (1404-1472), an Italian Renaissance humanist, author, and architect, widely regarded as the founder of modern architecture criticism.
In the realm of literature, Rafeal Sabatini (1875-1950) was an Italian-British writer best known for his historical novels, such as "Scaramouche" and "Captain Blood." Rafeal Navarro (1905-1975), a Mexican actor and singer, gained fame for his roles in numerous films during the Golden Age of Mexican cinema.
In the world of sports, Rafeal Nadal (born 1986) is a renowned Spanish professional tennis player who has won numerous Grand Slam titles and is widely regarded as one of the greatest players in the history of the sport.
People
Rafeal + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rafeal 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
Rafeal: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rafeal?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 870 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rafeal 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 393,971 US residents.
Is Rafeal a common name?
We classify Rafeal as "Very Rare". It ranks above 89.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 925 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rafeal most popular?
The single biggest year for Rafeal was 1989, when 43 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rafeal is about 39 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rafeal a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rafeal 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.
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.