Girl nameCurrently #32 in the USFalling
Abigail
AB-ih-gayl//ˈæbɪɡeɪl//
3 syllablesPeak year: 20037 lettersStarts with A
Meaning & origin
My father's joy
Abigail comes from the Hebrew Avigayil, meaning 'my father is joy' or 'source of joy'. In the Bible she is described as wise and beautiful, later becoming a wife of King David, and the name has carried steady English use since the Puritan era, with a strong modern comeback.
Abigail's popularity over time
| Year | Births named Abigail |
|---|---|
| 1880 | 12 |
| 1881 | 8 |
| 1882 | 14 |
| 1883 | 11 |
| 1884 | 13 |
| 1885 | 9 |
| 1886 | 15 |
| 1887 | 13 |
| 1888 | 18 |
| 1889 | 20 |
| 1890 | 9 |
| 1891 | 11 |
| 1892 | 11 |
| 1893 | 21 |
| 1894 | 13 |
| 1895 | 15 |
| 1896 | 15 |
| 1897 | 15 |
| 1898 | 11 |
| 1899 | 7 |
| 1900 | 14 |
| 1901 | 13 |
| 1902 | 18 |
| 1903 | 20 |
| 1904 | 8 |
| 1905 | 11 |
| 1906 | 15 |
| 1907 | 12 |
| 1908 | 13 |
| 1909 | 12 |
| 1910 | 16 |
| 1911 | 18 |
| 1912 | 24 |
| 1913 | 14 |
| 1914 | 25 |
| 1915 | 38 |
| 1916 | 37 |
| 1917 | 41 |
| 1918 | 26 |
| 1919 | 31 |
| 1920 | 33 |
| 1921 | 24 |
| 1922 | 29 |
| 1923 | 32 |
| 1924 | 31 |
| 1925 | 37 |
| 1926 | 30 |
| 1927 | 33 |
| 1928 | 40 |
| 1929 | 33 |
| 1930 | 25 |
| 1931 | 27 |
| 1932 | 30 |
| 1933 | 32 |
| 1934 | 30 |
| 1935 | 37 |
| 1936 | 36 |
| 1937 | 45 |
| 1938 | 50 |
| 1939 | 53 |
| 1940 | 48 |
| 1941 | 40 |
| 1942 | 48 |
| 1943 | 63 |
| 1944 | 56 |
| 1945 | 53 |
| 1946 | 76 |
| 1947 | 78 |
| 1948 | 72 |
| 1949 | 113 |
| 1950 | 112 |
| 1951 | 137 |
| 1952 | 151 |
| 1953 | 169 |
| 1954 | 147 |
| 1955 | 180 |
| 1956 | 190 |
| 1957 | 187 |
| 1958 | 192 |
| 1959 | 206 |
| 1960 | 228 |
| 1961 | 233 |
| 1962 | 263 |
| 1963 | 255 |
| 1964 | 244 |
| 1965 | 209 |
| 1966 | 191 |
| 1967 | 244 |
| 1968 | 263 |
| 1969 | 281 |
| 1970 | 362 |
| 1971 | 392 |
| 1972 | 393 |
| 1973 | 479 |
| 1974 | 605 |
| 1975 | 615 |
| 1976 | 833 |
| 1977 | 795 |
| 1978 | 1,010 |
| 1979 | 1,226 |
| 1980 | 1,588 |
| 1981 | 1,823 |
| 1982 | 1,894 |
| 1983 | 1,922 |
| 1984 | 1,851 |
| 1985 | 1,860 |
| 1986 | 2,011 |
| 1987 | 2,014 |
| 1988 | 2,386 |
| 1989 | 3,427 |
| 1990 | 3,739 |
| 1991 | 3,812 |
| 1992 | 4,004 |
| 1993 | 5,197 |
| 1994 | 7,255 |
| 1995 | 7,836 |
| 1996 | 8,621 |
| 1997 | 9,635 |
| 1998 | 11,122 |
| 1999 | 11,703 |
| 2000 | 13,110 |
| 2001 | 14,826 |
| 2002 | 15,322 |
| 2003 | 15,955 |
| 2004 | 15,524 |
| 2005 | 15,769 |
| 2006 | 15,649 |
| 2007 | 15,503 |
| 2008 | 15,107 |
| 2009 | 14,417 |
| 2010 | 14,266 |
| 2011 | 13,282 |
| 2012 | 12,741 |
| 2013 | 12,445 |
| 2014 | 12,126 |
| 2015 | 12,430 |
| 2016 | 11,804 |
| 2017 | 10,651 |
| 2018 | 9,890 |
| 2019 | 9,200 |
| 2020 | 7,910 |
| 2021 | 6,991 |
| 2022 | 6,306 |
| 2023 | 5,691 |
| 2024 | 5,499 |
Abigail through the decades
- Abigail peaked in 2003, when 15,955 babies were named Abigail in the US.
- Over the last 10 years of data (2015–2024), use of Abigail has fallen 39% compared to the 10 years before that.
- Abigail currently ranks #32 in the US and is cooling off.
Nicknames
AbbyGailAbbie
Variants & spellings
AbagailAvigail
Famous people named Abigail
- Abigail Adams — American first lady