Yael
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Meaning
“'ibex, mountain goat' (Hebrew Yael)”
Say it: yah-EL
The story
Yael is the Hebrew form of Jael, from the Hebrew Yael meaning "ibex, mountain goat", and the Old Testament bearer is the wife of Heber the Kenite, who defeats Sisera, the fleeing Canaanite captain, in one of the bluntest scenes in the Book of Judges. The American record runs on both sides of the ledger: a girls' line from about 18 in the 1950s to about 1,120 in the 2010s, and a boys' line that started later and grew faster, about 1,370 in the 2000s and about 2,120 in the 2010s. This decade holds about 840 girls and about 1,600 boys so far. A sure-footed animal in the meaning, a decisive woman in the story, and one spelling walking both sides of the record at once.
How popular is Yael around the world?
In the United States, 2,437 babies were named Yael between 2020 and 2025. In Mexico City, there were 195 registrations of Yael in 2022.
Yael is on the official records of the United States, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico, Chile, Austria, Spain, Montevideo, France, England and Wales, Canada and Brazil.
United States
1 in 8,900
In the United States, 2,437 babies were named Yael between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Yael peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Mexico City City
1 in 600
In Mexico City, there were 195 registrations of Yael in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023 (12 registrations through 3 Mar) is excluded as partial. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Argentina
1 in 1,500
In Argentina, 433 newborns were given the name Yael in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Puerto Rico
1 in 2,600
In Puerto Rico, 7 babies were named Yael in 2025, and 544 have carried the name since 1998.
share of that year’s births on record
First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)
Chile
1 in 8,900
In Chile, 11 boys were registered as Yael in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
In Chile, 9 girls were registered as Yael in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
share of that year’s name registrations
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Austria
1 in 13,000
In Austria, 5 girls named Yael were born in 2025, the 742nd most common name among girls that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 6 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Spain
1 in 24,000
In Spain, 1,398 residents are named Yael, ranked 1,078th among men, with a mean age of 8.6 years.
In Spain, 439 residents are named Yael, ranked 2,503rd among women, with a mean age of 26.3 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Montevideo City
1 in 25,0002011
In Montevideo, 1 boy named Yael was born in 2011, spelling variants counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
France
1 in 26,000
In France, about 15 girls named Yael were born in 2025, ranked 2,128th among girls that year.
In France, about 10 boys named Yael were born in 2025, ranked 2,698th among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. This registry counts each spelling separately; the figures above are for the exact spelling Yael, and accented spellings are separate names. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
England and Wales
1 in 37,000
In England and Wales, 16 girls named Yael were born in 2025, ranked 1,809th among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Canada
1 in 41,000
In Canada, 9 girls named Yael were born in 2024, ranked 2,256th among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Brazil
1 in 1M
At the 2022 census, 135 people in Brazil were named Yael, ranked 33,416th, with a median age of 24.
Among people named Yael living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 2000s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Poland
last on record 2013
Yael is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Not on the record in Ireland, New Zealand and Scotland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the South Australia record for 1944 to 2017: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Yael
Most people given the name Yael in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Where Yael travels
Jewish American · a beloved modern Israeli-Hebrew name
Keep exploring
Names like Yael · Jewish American baby names · Hebrew baby names · Short names
The Yael deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Yael truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Yael fits with your family’s names and surname.
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