BABY NAMES
Rachel
Hebrew
 Up in popularity
 Down in popularity
 Best bet
 Unisex
The delicate and demure name of a biblical matriarch, Rachel hit its peak in 1996, at the height of "Rachel & Ross" mania. Though it is still a popular name, with several elegant actresses to claim as its own (Rachel McAdams, Rachel Weisz), the Friends connection forever identifies Rachel as a spoiled daddy's girl who takes more than a decade to get her career and love life figured out.

Variations
Shell, Shelly, Rahela, Rakel, Rahel, Rakhil, Rakhila, Rachael, Rae, Rashke, Shelley, Rashka, Rachelle, Rashell, Rashelle, Rachela, Racheal, Raychel, Racheli, Rachelce, Rachella, Shellie, Raychelle, Rachell, Raquella, Raquela, Raschel, Raquelle, Ray
Popularity rankings from the Social Security Administration
Rachel
About name popularity rankings
You may find some surprises -- for example, who knew Jennifer was a boy's name? Because this feature uses actual Social Security data, it includes the human error that attends a large survey, but it still reliably reflects the patterns of naming fashion.