Jamal
Jamal was the 1197th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 169 babies. Its best year was 1993, when it ranked 233rd with 1,245 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 458 places. More babies were named Jamal in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Meaning "beauty" · Arabic
Say it juh-MAHL /dʒəˈmɑl/
- Rank in 2025
- #1,197 boys, down 285 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 169boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19931,245 babies
- Total since 1880
- 33,501babies recorded
What does the name Jamal mean?
Jamal is an Arabic name from jamāl, "beauty", from the Arabic root j-m-l. Wikipedia notes that it is popular in the Arab and Muslim worlds and among African Americans, and is usually but not always masculine. It was most popular in the US in the 1990s; Jamar is a related American form.
جَمَال (Arabic, “jamāl, beauty”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Jamaal, Jamar, Jamil, Jameela.
See also: Arabic names, names that mean beautiful.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Jamal', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Wikipedia, 'Jamal', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Jamal popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 266 since 1966.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,197 | 169 |
| 2020 | #912 | 245 |
| 2010 | #609 | 407 |
| 2000 | #366 | 726 |
| 1990 | #247 | 1,112 |
| 1980 | #327 | 581 |
| 1970 | #477 | 284 |
| 1960 | #1,837 | 20 |
| 1950 | #3,488 | 6 |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Jamal, counting every spelling?
Jamal is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #1,024 for boys in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #1,197 for Jamal on its own. Together these spellings went to 202 boys in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jamal | 169 | #1,197 | 1,023 |
| Jamaal | 26 | #4,078 | 178 |
| Jamall | 7 | #10,110 | 37 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Jamal?
169 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Jamal (0.05 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Jamal born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 50 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Jamal.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Jamal?
About 31,700 people born in the US named Jamal are alive today, with a median age of 33; half are between 23 and 40. That makes Jamal mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Jamal by state
How common Jamal was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Louisiana (2.8×), Michigan (2.6×), Maryland (2.1×), Georgia (2.1×), Florida (1.6×). In 26 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Jamal: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Jamal, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Jamal · Sibling names for Jamal
Questions about the name Jamal
What does Jamal mean?
Jamal means “"beauty"” (Arabic origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Jamal?
Jamal was the 1197th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 169 babies. Its best year was 1993, when it ranked 233rd with 1,245 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 458 places. More babies were named Jamal in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Is Jamal a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Jamal in the US.
Where is Jamal most popular?
In 2021–2025, Jamal was most common in Louisiana (0.33 per 1,000 boys), followed by Michigan and Maryland.