Axel

#10,917 for girls in 2025, 8 births · #79 for boys in 2025, 4,140 births
Given to boys 99.7% of the time

Showing
Show data for
Peak · boys
2023 · 4,523 births
Debut · boys
16 births
In top 100 · boys
8 yrs
of 146 years
Total births · boys
72,459
since 1880

Axel over time

boys

Rank among boys' names. Click any year to open it.

#1#10#100#1,000rank188019001920194019601980200020201897boysat peak
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.

Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.

Show data table
Yeargirlsboys
rankbirthsrankbirths
2025#10,9178#794,140
2024#11,1228#784,255
2023#8,48612#714,523
2022#7,28115#764,350
2021#8,02413#764,540
2020#11,0908#724,667
2019#11,3568#844,505
2018#11,4278#944,074
2017#6,53118#1043,789
2016#10,11310#1163,467
2015#8,93112#1233,249
2014#10,12910#1452,806
2013#16,5475#1682,428
2012—#1622,482
2011#10,37410#1373,036
2010#13,4487#1871,973
2009#9,97511#2641,319
2008#12,5798#2721,257
2007#10,12911#2881,196
2006—#2961,132
2005#10,9219#3141,047
2004#16,0995#325938
2003—#346809
2002#11,1088#314910
2001#15,3525#2581,274
2000—#361731
1999—#799191
1998—#795192
1997—#838171
1996—#860161
1995—#917145
1994—#955133
1993—#965124
1992—#911135
1991—#845151
1990—#898131
1989—#951115
1988—#1,52548
1987—#1,46749
1986—#1,29956
1985—#1,69836
1984—#1,60637
1983—#1,86429
1982—#2,11125
1981—#2,08625
1980—#2,05826
1979—#1,86729
1978—#2,27920
1977—#2,00824
1976—#1,87326
1975—#2,45017
1974—#2,35817
1973—#2,03620
1972—#2,32316
1971—#2,12619
1970—#1,43534
1969—#1,44031
1968—#1,65023
1967—#2,35212
1966—#2,13214
1965—#2,08415
1964—#2,11415
1963—#2,30013
1962—#2,18614
1961—#1,94818
1960—#2,31513
1959—#1,86519
1958—#1,83819
1957——
1956—#2,7989
1955—#3,5056
1954——
1953——
1952—#2,37611
1951—#3,0667
1950—#2,01914
1949—#2,6069
1948—#3,6685
1947—#2,6719
1946—#2,9197
1945—#2,5748
1944—#2,6338
1943—#2,18212
1942—#2,5239
1941—#2,4919
1940—#3,4595
1939—#2,6098
1938—#3,1756
1937—#2,6808
1936—#2,18411
1935—#1,83715
1934—#2,7428
1933——
1932—#2,46510
1931—#2,8648
1930—#1,96415
1929—#1,67220
1928—#3,6976
1927—#1,60323
1926—#2,30213
1925—#1,24633
1924—#1,67522
1923—#1,55124
1922—#1,59123
1921—#1,10141
1920—#1,41627
1919—#1,62421
1918—#1,07940
1917—#1,11336
1916—#89249
1915—#87949
1914—#1,15325
1913—#1,11221
1912—#85427
1911—#1,03811
1910—#92812
1909—#1,0838
1908—#1,2176
1907—#81511
1906—#70912
1905—#9198
1904—#1,0646
1903—#73410
1902—#8628
1901—#9436
1900—#78511
1899—#52114
1898—#45220
1897—#47317
1896—#53415
1895—#43720
1894—#66810
1893—#37123
1892—#57213
1891—#42717
1890—#45816
1889—#43418
1888—#48416
1887—#39218
1886—#33625
1885—#46216
1884—#46816
1883—#52712
1882—#54012
1881—#46014
1880—#44216
First appearance
1880

In the first year the SSA published name data, Axel was already there! It came in at #442, and was given to 16 baby boys.


Quietest stretch: 1933, when fewer than 5 boys a year got the name.

Where Axel is popular in 1897

The SSA only publishes names by state from 1910 on.

See more about Axel
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
  • 1 spot since 2024 (#78 → #79)
  • 7 spots since 2020 (#72 → #79)
  • 44 spots since 2015 (#123 → #79)
  • Biggest jump: 574 spots in 1989 (#1,525 → #951)
  • Biggest drop: 402 spots in 1908 (#815 → #1,217)
Rise & fade · boys
143 yrs to peak
  • Debuted 1880
  • Peaked 2023 at #71 (4,523 births)
  • Not yet halved from its peak
Top of the charts · boys
Top 100 for 8 yrs
  • Top 10: never
  • Top 100: 8 yrs · run 2018–2025
  • Top 1,000: 68 yrs · run 1989–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 370
  • Highest: 1 in 370 boys born in 2020 were named Axel (0.27%)
  • Latest: 1 in 413 boys born in 2025 (0.24%)
  • Its best rank, #71 in 2023, was only 1 in 378 (0.26%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 2010s
  • 43.9% of all boys named Axel (31,809) were born in this decade
Show by decade
DecadeBirthsBest rankAvg rank
1880s163#336 (1886)#455
1890s165#371 (1893)#491
1900s86#709 (1906)#913
1910s291#854 (1912)#1,067
1920s232#1,101 (1921)#1,785
1930s89#1,837 (1935)#2,502
1940s81#2,182 (1943)#2,773
1950s85#1,838 (1958)#2,495
1960s168#1,440 (1969)#2,052
1970s222#1,435 (1970)#2,076
1980s446#951 (1989)#1,667
1990s1,534#795 (1998)#878
2000s10,613#258 (2001)#304
2010s31,809#84 (2019)#132
2020s26,475#71 (2023)#75

All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.

Axel in 1897

boys
#473
17 births · 1 in 6,633 boys

Top boys' names in 1897

  1. #1John7,550
  2. #2William7,198
  3. #3James5,113
  4. #4George4,078
  5. #5Charles3,341
  6. #6Joseph2,827
  7. #7Frank2,726
  8. #8Robert2,701
  9. #9Edward2,121
  10. #10Henry1,994
  11. #473Axel17
More about 1897

boys

112,757 boys got a published name in 1897; 1 in 6,633 of them was named Axel, which outranked 61.5% of the 1,229 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 35.2% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).

Ranked beside Axel
  1. #459Pierre18
  2. #459Reginald18
  3. #459Winfield18
  4. #473Axel17
  5. #473Albin17
  6. #473Alice17
  7. #473Arther17
  8. #495Alford16
  9. #495Archibald16
  10. #495Bernice16

Tied with 21 names at #473; 3 shown. Tied names share a rank, as in SSA's lists.

Biggest movers since 1896
Risers
  1. ↑ 509Roswell#982 → #473
  2. ↑ 487Theron#982 → #495
  3. ↑ 486Alois#1,101 → #615
  4. ↑ 486Rush#1,101 → #615
  5. ↑ 467Helmer#982 → #515
Fallers
  1. ↓ 480Benton#462 → #942
  2. ↓ 465Louise#592 → #1,057
  3. ↓ 465Bradford#592 → #1,057
  4. ↓ 461Allison#481 → #942
  5. ↓ 424Hilliard#518 → #942

Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.

See the top 100 for 1897 →