Wavel
Of unknown meaning, potentially derived from the French place name "Wavelet".
Name Census estimates that about 1 living Americans carry the first name Wavel. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Wavel today is around 57 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wavel births was 1918 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wavel. 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.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Wavel. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
1
~ 1 in 342,754,338 Americans
Peak year
1918
8 babies that year
Average age
57
years old
1928 SSA rank
#5,411
Tracked since 1912
Popularity
Wavel: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wavel from the 1910s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 21 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
Wavel 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 Wavel 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 Wavel
The name Wavel finds its origins in the Old English language, deriving from the Proto-Germanic root *wab-, meaning "to weave" or "to braid." This root eventually gave rise to the Old English word "wæfel," which referred to a piece of cloth with a woven or interlaced pattern. The name Wavel likely emerged as a descriptive surname or occupational name for someone involved in weaving or textile work during the early medieval period.
Records indicate that the name Wavel was already in use by the 11th century in parts of England. One of the earliest known bearers of this name was Wavel de Stratton, a landowner mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of lands and landholdings commissioned by William the Conqueror.
In the following centuries, the name Wavel continued to appear in various historical documents and records across different regions of England. One noteworthy individual was Sir Wavel de Bohun, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War against France in the 14th century.
The name Wavel also found its way into literary works, such as the 14th-century Middle English poem "Sir Gawain and the Green Knight," where a character named Wavel is mentioned as one of King Arthur's knights.
During the Renaissance period, a prominent figure bearing the name Wavel was Wavel Maplesden (c. 1480-1558), an English clergyman and scholar who served as the Archdeacon of Essex and played a significant role in the early stages of the English Reformation.
Another historical figure of note was Wavel Holinshed (c. 1525-1580), an English chronicler and author best known for his comprehensive work, "The Chronicles of England, Scotland, and Ireland," which served as a valuable source of information for many later writers, including William Shakespeare.
In the 17th century, Wavel Sandys (1592-1677) was a prominent English colonist and one of the founders of the Virginia Colony in North America, where he served as the treasurer and a member of the Council of State.
While the name Wavel has become less common in modern times, it remains a unique and historically significant name that carries a rich heritage and connections to the textile industry, literature, and exploration of the New World.
People
Wavel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wavel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wavel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wavel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wavel 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 342,754,338 US residents.
Is Wavel a common name?
We classify Wavel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 3.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 41 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wavel most popular?
The single biggest year for Wavel was 1918, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wavel is about 57 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Wavel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wavel a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Wavel 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.
Is Wavel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wavel 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 Wavel 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many Americans are named Wavel?
See how many people have the name Wavel on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.