Manuel

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Boy · Hebrew

Manuel

Say it: mah-NWEL

Try it with your surname

Meaning

Short for Emmanuel, from Hebrew Immanuel 'God is with us'.

Certainscholars agree on this meaning.

Its wave through time

Timeless: in steady use for over a century

In the United States

187,768 babies given this name since 1880
At its height in 1929, about 1 in 662 boys
1,013 babies in 2020

Through the ages

Used by

Mexican Central American Andean Argentine Caribbean Spanish Brazilian

The family of the name

Other spellings: Manolo, Manny

Portuguese	Manuel
Italian	Emanuele

Famous bearers

Manuel Belgrano, Argentine independence leader

Names worth a look

MiguelBoyFrom Hebrew Mikha'el 'who is like God?'.Colonial · peak 2002

SebastianBoyFrom Latin Sebastianus 'man of Sebaste', from Greek sebastos 'venerable'.Early Medieval · peak 2018

JesúsBoyGreek Iēsous, from Hebrew Yeshua, a late form of Yehoshua 'YHWH is salvation'.Biblical · peak 2001

FranciscoBoyFrom Latin Franciscus 'Frenchman'.Colonial · peak 1995

JorgeBoyFrom Greek geōrgos 'farmer'.Colonial · peak 1996

AntonioBoyFrom the Roman family name Antonius, of unknown, possibly Etruscan, origin; 'priceless' is a folk etymology.Colonial · peak 1997

ManuelaGirlFeminine of Manuel, from Hebrew Immanuel 'God is with us'.Colonial · peak 1909

ManuelitoBoyA Spanish diminutive of Manuel, from Hebrew Immanuel 'God with us'; the name by which outsiders knew this leader.Indigenous · forgotten

Where this comes from

Parish baptism registers
Colonial records of the Americas
United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source

Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.

Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.