Girl · #277 in 2026

Angela

Angela is a female given name. It is derived from the Greek word ángelos (ἄγγελος), meaning angel from Greek belief systems. In the United States, the name "Angela" was at its most popular between 1965 and 1979, when it was ranked among the top 10 names for girls.

Current Rank
#277
Peak Rank
#5 (1971)
Total Babies
675K
5-Yr Trend
-6%
1880
First Year
2026
Last Year
1971
Peak Year
#5
Peak Rank
675K
Total Count
147
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Angela

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Angela is a female given name. It is derived from the Greek word ángelos (ἄγγελος), meaning angel from Greek belief systems. In the United States, the name "Angela" was at its most popular between 1965 and 1979, when it was ranked among the top 10 names for girls.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

The Story of Angela

Angela first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1880, with 7 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1971, when 25,900 Angelas were born — ranking #6 that year. As of 2026, Angela ranks #277 for baby girls with 1,148 births, gradually falling (-6%). In total, more than 675K Angelas have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Notable people named Angela

A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.

  • Angela (singer) (born 1991), Ukrainian singer and model
  • Angela of Foligno (1248–1309), Franciscan, Catholic, saint
  • Angela Aames (1956–1988), American B-movie actress
  • Angelica Bäumer (1932–2025), Austrian art critic and art historian
  • Ángela Acuña Braun (1888–1983), Costa Rican lawyer, writer and feminist
  • Angela Adamoli (born 1972), former Italian basketball player
  • Angela Adams (born 1965), American rug designer
  • Angela Addison (born 1999), English association football player

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Names that sound like Angela

Phonetically similar names — useful when Angela is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Angela

What does the name Angela mean?
Angela is a female given name. It is derived from the Greek word ángelos (ἄγγελος), meaning angel from Greek belief systems. In the United States, the name "Angela" was at its most popular between 1965 and 1979, when it was ranked among the top 10 names for girls.
How popular is Angela in 2026?
In 2026, Angela ranks #277 among girls' names in the U.S., with 1,148 babies given the name that year.
When was Angela most popular?
Angela reached its peak popularity in 1971, ranking #5 that year with 25,900 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Angela most popular?
Angela has historically been most popular in Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Angela.
Is Angela a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Angela is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Angela?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Angela include Minnie, Donna, Joan. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Angela

Angela is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 675K births in the dataset. Angela's peak popularity came in 1971 when it ranked #5. Use the chart and map above to compare Angela's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.