Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Noel?
Births per year, rank history and how many Noels are alive today.
Noel (male), once a common boys' name, is now an uncommon choice for new babies in England and Wales, ranked 593rd in 2025 with 65 given the name. The name peaked in 1934, when around 320 babies were given the name, the 96th most popular that year. It has declined since 1934; the 2025 figure is roughly 21% of its peak. Numbers have been stable in recent years. At least 12,000 babies have been named Noel in England and Wales since 1934. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
The Noel you are most likely to meet is around 72 years old - or else around 10: the name has two living generations. Half of all Noels born in England and Wales are between 42 and 76, and there are at least 10,000 of them alive today. If you walk into a room of 100 males, there's roughly a 3.2% chance that at least one of them will be called Noel.
How many babies are named Noel each year?
Where does Noel rank among boys' names?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
When was the name Noel most popular?
Noel peaked in 1934, when around 320 babies in England and Wales were given the name.
How many people are called Noel?
At least 10,000 people named Noel born in England and Wales are alive today.
How old is the typical Noel?
Most living Noels are between 42 and 76; the most common age is about 72. There is a second cluster around 10.
Is Noel becoming more or less popular?
Well past its peak: today's figures are a fraction of the 1934 peak, though numbers have levelled off in recent years.