Behind the Name
the etymology and history of first names
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View Name: Rachel


RACHEL
GENDER: Feminine
USAGE: English, Hebrew, French, German, Dutch, Biblical, Biblical Latin, Biblical Greek, Biblical Hebrew
OTHER SCRIPTS: רָחֵל (Hebrew), Ραχηλ (Ancient Greek)
PRONOUNCED: RAY-chəl (English), ra-SHEL (French), RAH-khəl (Dutch)   [key]
Meaning & History
From the Hebrew name רָחֵל (Rachel) meaning "ewe". In the Old Testament this is the name of the favourite wife of Jacob and the mother of Joseph and Benjamin. The name was common among Jews in the Middle Ages, but it was not generally used as a Christian name in the English-speaking world until after the Protestant Reformation.
Related Names
VARIANTS: Rachael, Racheal, Rachelle, Rachyl, Raschelle (English), Ruchel (Yiddish), Rahel (Biblical Latin)
DIMINUTIVES: Rae, Raelene, Raelyn (English)
OTHER LANGUAGES: Rakel (Danish), Raakel (Finnish), Ráhel (Hungarian), Ráichéal (Irish), Rachele (Italian), Rakel (Norwegian), Raquel (Portuguese), Rahela (Romanian), Rahela (Serbian), Raquel (Spanish), Rakel (Swedish)
Popularity
United States  ranked #117 
England/Wales  - 
Canada (BC)  ranked #72 
Australia (NSW)  - 
France  ranked #158 
Ireland  ranked #29 
Netherlands  ranked #284 
Northern Ireland  ranked #34 
Scotland  ranked #70 



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