Abel sits comfortably in the UK charts at #166 in 2024 — recognisable but not overwhelming. Your child may occasionally share their name.
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UK Rank 2024
#166
US Rank #220
About the Name Abel
Abel is steadily gaining in popularity, up 44 places over the past five years. Its best recorded rank was #153 in 2023, and it currently sits at #166. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Abel is distinctive enough that your child will likely be the only one in both their class and their school — standing out on every register.
In the US it sits at #220 — notably more popular in the UK than across the Atlantic.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Abel
Unlikely. With around 302 UK babies named Abel per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Abel in his class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Abel is currently rising in popularity in the UK, up 44 places over the last five years to #166 in 2024. If this trend continues, it will become more common in classrooms over the next decade.
Abel is more popular in the UK (#166) than in the US (#220). Names with strong rankings in both countries tend to have broad cross-cultural appeal, working well for international families or those with ties to both nations.
Notable people named Abel include: Zachary Abel — Zachary Burr Abel is an American actor.; Abel Yalew — Abel Yalew Tilahun is an Ethiopian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Egyptian Premier League club ZED and the Ethiopia national team.; Abel Balbo — Abel Eduardo Balbo is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a striker..
Abel appears in the US top 500 at #220 in 2024 — moderately popular in America, though less so than in the UK.
302
UK babies named Abel (2024)
~0.0
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
~0.2
In a school of 600
↑ 44 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Abel
Likely around 1 other Abel in the class
UK Popularity (1996–2024)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
US Popularity (2020–2024)
Rank · SSA official data
✨ Similar names to Abel
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Abel Tendekayi Muzorewa, also commonly referred to as Bishop Muzorewa, was a Zimbabwean bishop and politician who served as the first and only Prime Minister of Zimbabwe Rhodesia from the Internal Settlement to the Lancaster House Agreement in 1979. A United Methodist Church bishop and nationalist leader, he held office for less than a year.
Abel Eduardo Balbo is an Argentine football manager and former player who played as a striker. Balbo played for various clubs in Argentina and Italy during the course of his career.
The Abel Prize ( AH-bəl; Norwegian: Abelprisen [ˈɑ̀ːbl̩ˌpriːsn̩]) is awarded annually by the King of Norway to one or more outstanding mathematicians. It is named after the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel and directly modeled after the Nobel Prizes; as such, it is sometimes considered the Nobel Prize of mathematics.
Carl Friedrich Abel was a German composer of the Classical era. He was a renowned player of the viola da gamba, and produced significant compositions for that instrument.
Niels Henrik Abel was a Norwegian mathematician who made pioneering contributions in a variety of fields. His most famous single result is the first complete proof demonstrating the impossibility of solving the general quintic equation in radicals.
Abel Janszoon Tasman was a Dutch seafarer and explorer, best known for his voyages of 1642 and 1644 in the service of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). He was the first European to reach New Zealand, which he named Staten Landt.