Samiel
Angel of death in the Jewish tradition.
Name Census estimates that about 102 living Americans carry the first name Samiel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Samiel today is around 14 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Samiel births was 2022 (11 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Samiel. 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
102
~ 1 in 3,360,337 Americans
Peak year
2022
11 babies that year
Average age
14
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,817
Tracked since 1914
Census
Samiel in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 201 people with the first name Samiel, which placed it at #38,294 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
#38,294
National first-name rank
People counted
201
201 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Black or African American
33.8% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Samiel
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Samiel is Black at 33.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.8%) and White (24.4%). 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 Samiel 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 Samiel at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American33.8% · 68
- Hispanic or Latino33.8% · 68
- White24.4% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.0% · 12
- Two or more races2.0% · 4
Popularity
Samiel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Samiel from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 40 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Samiel 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 Samiel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Samiel
The given name Samiel is believed to have its origins in the Arabic language, although its precise etymology is uncertain. It is thought to be derived from either the Arabic word "samm," meaning "venom" or "poison," or from the word "shamil," meaning "complete" or "comprehensive."
One theory suggests that Samiel was originally a name given to a powerful and destructive desert wind in Arab folklore. This wind was said to be so intense and poisonous that it could kill anyone who crossed its path. As a result, the name Samiel may have been used to personify this deadly force of nature.
Another interpretation links Samiel to the Islamic concept of the "Samiel," which refers to a particular type of jinn (supernatural beings in Islamic mythology) that are known for their strength and ferociousness. In this context, the name Samiel may have been used to represent the power and fierceness associated with these mythical creatures.
The earliest recorded use of the name Samiel can be traced back to the 12th century, where it appeared in several Arabic literary works and historical accounts. However, it is worth noting that the name was relatively uncommon during this time period and was primarily used in storytelling and mythology rather than as a personal name.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Samiel was Samiel ibn Adnan, a 13th-century Arab poet and philosopher from Baghdad. His work, which focused on themes of love, nature, and spirituality, is still celebrated in the Arab world today.
Another notable figure named Samiel was Samiel al-Ghazi, a 14th-century military leader and commander of the Mamluk Sultanate. He was known for his bravery and strategic prowess in battles against the Mongol invaders, and his victories helped to secure the Mamluk rule in the region.
In the realm of literature, Samiel is perhaps most famously associated with the character of the same name in Johann Wolfgang von Goethe's classic work, "Faust." In this German tragedy, Samiel is depicted as a demonic figure who serves as a messenger and guide to the devil, Mephistopheles.
A more recent historical figure named Samiel was Samiel Al-Saadi, a 20th-century Iraqi artist and sculptor who gained recognition for his contemporary interpretations of traditional Arab motifs and themes. His work was widely exhibited and celebrated throughout the Middle East and Europe.
Finally, Samiel Aitsidahou was a 20th-century French author and poet of Algerian descent. His writings, which often explored themes of identity, exile, and cultural diversity, earned him critical acclaim and numerous literary awards during his lifetime.
People
Samiel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Samiel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Samiel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Samiel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 102 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Samiel 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 3,360,337 US residents.
Is Samiel a common name?
We classify Samiel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 64.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 113 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Samiel most popular?
The single biggest year for Samiel was 2022, when 11 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Samiel is about 14 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Samiel in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 201 people with the name Samiel, or 0.07 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #38,294 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 Samiel 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 Samiel?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Samiel leans strongly male. 184 people counted with this name were male (89.8%), compared with 21 female bearers (10.2%). 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 Samiel?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Samiel is Black at 33.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.8%) and White (24.4%). 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 Samiel most often in the Census?
Black is the largest reported group for people named Samiel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 33.8% (68 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 Samiel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Samiel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Samiel 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 Samiel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Samiel 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 Samiel 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 are called Samiel?
You can see how many people have the name Samiel on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.