Spelling comparison
Rafael vs Raphael
2025 US records for these exact spellings: Rafael 1,639 and Raphael 807. Rafael’s share of that pair is 67.0%. The multiple is about 2.0 times the published count of Raphael.
US national data through 2025 · Source retrieved
Data updated
The two spellings share a Little Names spelling key. Rafael profile · Raphael profile
Rafael and Raphael name the same child-name in two spellings. The tables below never merge those rows into a single total. Raphael is the longer of the two spellings, and Rafael is the shorter. Rafael uses “f” where Raphael uses “ph”, between “Ra” and “ael”.
In years when both spellings were published, the lead changed 10 times. The latest crossover is 1919, when Rafael moved ahead of Raphael on the combined published count (108 to 106).
Rafael is first published in these national files in 1880, and Raphael in 1882. Rafael’s larger 2025 category is male. Raphael’s larger 2025 category is male. Rafael led 13 decades and Raphael led 2 decades among decades in which both spellings have a published total.
Inside 2016–2025, the widest combined gap was 942 records in 2021, and the closest year was 2016 (a gap of 687). Of the combined 2025 records for this pair (2,446), Rafael is 67.0% and Raphael is 33.0%.
2016–2025, count and rank
2016 belongs to Rafael. Rafael had 1,238 male records (rank #291); Raphael had 551 male records (rank #533). The gap that year was 687 records. For 2017, compare the categories separately: Rafael had 1,282 male records (rank #283); Raphael had 561 male records (rank #516). Rafael led 2017 by 721 published records (1,282 to 561), and the smaller spelling is Raphael. Rafael was the higher published spelling in 2018, with 1,405 male records (rank #258) against 536 male records (rank #529) for Raphael. The 2019 national file shows Rafael led 2019 by 847 published records (1,392 to 545). Read as exact spellings: Rafael had 1,392 male records (rank #261); Raphael had 545 male records (rank #523). 2020: Rafael led 2020 by 865 published records (1,424 to 559). Rafael and Raphael stay separate rows; 1,424 and 559 are not a combined baby-name total. In 2021, Rafael had 1,490 male records (rank #237); Raphael had 548 male records (rank #538). Rafael led 2021 by 942 published records (1,490 to 548). 2022 belongs to Rafael. Rafael had 1,517 male records (rank #232); Raphael had 641 male records (rank #483). The gap that year was 876 records. For 2023, compare the categories separately: Rafael had 1,517 male records (rank #231); Raphael had 686 male records (rank #453). Rafael led 2023 by 831 published records (1,517 to 686), and the smaller spelling is Raphael. Rafael was the higher published spelling in 2024, with 1,621 male records (rank #222) against 5 female records (rank #17,141) and 751 male records (rank #420) for Raphael. The 2025 national file shows Rafael led 2025 by 832 published records (1,639 to 807). Read as exact spellings: Rafael had 1,639 male records (rank #218); Raphael had 807 male records (rank #394).
| Year | Rafael female count | Rafael female rank | Rafael male count | Rafael male rank | Raphael female count | Raphael female rank | Raphael male count | Raphael male rank |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2016 | — | — | 1,238 | 291 | — | — | 551 | 533 |
| 2017 | — | — | 1,282 | 283 | — | — | 561 | 516 |
| 2018 | — | — | 1,405 | 258 | — | — | 536 | 529 |
| 2019 | — | — | 1,392 | 261 | — | — | 545 | 523 |
| 2020 | — | — | 1,424 | 247 | — | — | 559 | 513 |
| 2021 | — | — | 1,490 | 237 | — | — | 548 | 538 |
| 2022 | — | — | 1,517 | 232 | — | — | 641 | 483 |
| 2023 | — | — | 1,517 | 231 | — | — | 686 | 453 |
| 2024 | — | — | 1,621 | 222 | 5 | 17,141 | 751 | 420 |
| 2025 | — | — | 1,639 | 218 | — | — | 807 | 394 |
Combined counts, 1880–2025
Each line adds the published female and male counts for that spelling. A gap is a year with no published observation, not a zero. Rafael is the warm line and Raphael is the cool line.
Which spelling led each decade
Rafael was the 1880s leader, 65 published records against 28 for Raphael. The 1890s files give 84 published records to Rafael and 96 to Raphael, so Raphael led the decade. Rafael was the 1900s leader, 172 published records against 142 for Raphael. The 1910s files give 608 published records to Rafael and 824 to Raphael, so Raphael led the decade. Rafael was the 1920s leader, 1,718 published records against 1,059 for Raphael. The 1930s files give 1,420 published records to Rafael and 713 to Raphael, so Rafael led the decade. Rafael was the 1940s leader, 1,833 published records against 674 for Raphael. The 1950s files give 3,974 published records to Rafael and 899 to Raphael, so Rafael led the decade. Rafael was the 1960s leader, 6,336 published records against 1,139 for Raphael. The 1970s files give 9,720 published records to Rafael and 1,807 to Raphael, so Rafael led the decade. Rafael was the 1980s leader, 12,431 published records against 2,345 for Raphael. The 1990s files give 14,491 published records to Rafael and 2,958 to Raphael, so Rafael led the decade. Rafael was the 2000s leader, 15,093 published records against 3,178 for Raphael. The 2010s files give 12,794 published records to Rafael and 4,722 to Raphael, so Rafael led the decade. Rafael was the 2020s leader, 9,208 published records against 3,997 for Raphael.
Top states in 2025
Rafael’s highest 2025 state counts, combining published female and male rows where both exist, are California (323), Texas (295), Florida (124), New York (119), Illinois (57). Raphael’s highest 2025 state counts, combining published female and male rows where both exist, are California (116), Texas (108), New York (90), Florida (62), New Jersey (31). California, Texas, Florida are in the top states for both spellings. A state can rank differently for each spelling because the counts are not merged.