Samual
Masculine · “God has heard”
The Bible explains Samuel's name and the explanation does not fit. Hannah says she called him Samuel because she asked him of the Lord, but asked is sha'al, and the name contains shama, heard. Scholars have argued about the mismatch for a very long time.
How old is the name Samual?
Samual was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Samual alive today was born around 1983, making them about 42 years old. About 4,200 people named Samual are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Samual most popular?
Samual peaked in 1882, reaching #611 nationally. Today it ranks #6803, 6,192 places below that high. See the whole 1882 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Shemu'el to Samual
The story of Samual
Samuel is the last of the judges and the prophet who anoints both Saul and David, and the account of his birth is one of the most-read passages about a woman in the Hebrew Bible: Hannah, childless, prays at Shiloh and is accused of drunkenness by the priest. The mismatch between the name and the explanation given for it is a well-known problem, and one common suggestion is that the story originally belonged to Saul, whose name really does come from sha'al. The Samual spelling is an American variant of long standing, its best year being 1882, and it works because the final syllable is unstressed and its vowel inaudible.
Meaningscholars disagree
God has heard, or name of God
Hebrew Shemu'el is usually parsed as shama, heard, plus El, God, giving God has heard; a second parsing gives shem, name, plus El. The explanation offered in the first book of Samuel connects it instead to sha'al, to ask, which does not account for the m. The a in the final syllable of this spelling is an English substitution for the e and changes nothing.
How the name formed
- Shemu'el
- Samuel
- Samual
Related forms: Shmuel · Samuel · Samwil · Samuele
Pronouncing Samual
SAM-yoo-ul
Three syllables with the stress at the front. The final vowel is reduced to nothing, which is exactly why a and e are interchangeable in that position.
Nicknames for Samual
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 1997127 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #611reached in 1882
- Change vs 2022
- −7.7%12 in 2025, from 13
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Samual in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Shmuel in Hebrew — transliteration
- Samuel in Spanish — same name
- Samwil in Arabic — same name
- Samuele in Italian — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York, Georgia.
Samuals among us
people named Samual are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 142,340 born in 2025 was named Samual
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Samual sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Samual beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Samual in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled biblical meaning and one of the great prophetic names.
- Sam and Sammy are both completely established at any age.
- Familiar to everyone by sound while being an uncommon spelling.
- Samuel is the overwhelming standard and will be written for you.
- The spelling reads as an error to most people.
- The explanation the Bible gives for the name does not match the word.
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Samual
Masculine · #6803 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Samuals are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 4,200 people named Samual are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Samual in 2025?
- Samual ranks #6803 among US boy names in 2025, with 12 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Samual?
- About 1 in every 142,340 US boys born in 2025 was named Samual — 12 in all.
- Will my child share the name Samual with classmates?
- Samual will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Samual
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Zeb#6803 · Buster#6803 · Fabien#6803 · Eston#6803 · Tyjuan#6803 · Fuad#6803 · Aaiden#6803 · Sanford#6803
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Samual? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Samual and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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