Michael is a boy name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Michael means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Michael across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Michael has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Michael is a boy name of Hebrew origin meaning “who is like God”. the name of an archangel; originally a rhetorical question.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 4,448,633 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 46,941 births |
| Scotland since 1974 | 23,776 births |
| Northern Ireland since 1997 | 3,442 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 55,538 births |
| New Zealand top 100, since 1954 | 40,390 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Michael per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1957 (93,036/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 1996 (4,187/yr) · Ireland peaked in 1964 (2,157/yr) · Scotland peaked in 1990 (973/yr) · Northern Ireland peaked in 1997 (263/yr).
Michael has been one of the most popular baby names in the United States. It was most common in 1957, when it ranked #1 nationally (given to 93,036 babies that year), and a popular choice in the 1950s.
Miguel · Michaela · Mikaela · Micaela · Mikel · Michaele · Micayla · Mikal
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