NameCensus.

UK boy's name

Kabel

A variant spelling of the English word "cable," deriving from the Latin "capulare.".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2023. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Kabel is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Kabel popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2023 in this profile. In that release it ranked #4991, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2022, with 5 births.

This profile covers 17 England and Wales registrations across 5 recorded years from 2016 to 2023. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 60% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 17 living people in the UK are called Kabel. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2024 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Kabel ranked #4991 for boys in England and Wales in 2023, with 3 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2022, when 5 boys were registered as Kabel.
  • About 17 living people in the UK are estimated to have Kabel as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#4991

2023

Births in 2023

3

Latest year

Peak year

2022

5 births

Estimated living

17

2026

Meaning

What does Kabel mean?

The name Kabel is believed to have its origins in the Germanic languages, specifically in the Old High German and Middle High German dialects spoken in central and southern Germany during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old High German word "kapal," which meant "rope" or "cable."

In the early Middle Ages, the name Kabel was likely used as a descriptive surname or occupational name, referring to someone who worked with ropes or cables, such as a rope maker or a sailor. Over time, as surnames became more common, Kabel transitioned from an occupational name to a given name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kabel can be found in the Codex Traditionum Corbeiensium, a medieval cartulary from the Benedictine abbey of Corvey in present-day North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The document, dated to the 9th century, mentions a person named "Kabel" who was a tenant farmer on the abbey's lands.

In the 12th century, a nobleman named Kabel von Rosenberg was recorded as a vassal of the Holy Roman Emperor Frederick Barbarossa. Kabel von Rosenberg was a member of the influential Rosenberg family, which held significant power and influence in the region of Bohemia (now part of the Czech Republic).

Another notable figure with the name Kabel was Kabel Obilić, a Serbian knight who lived in the late 14th century. According to Serbian epic poetry, Kabel Obilić played a crucial role in the Battle of Kosovo against the Ottoman Empire in 1389, where he allegedly assassinated the Ottoman Sultan Murad I before being killed himself.

During the Renaissance period, a German humanist and scholar named Kabel Peutinger (1465-1547) gained recognition for his work in collecting and preserving historical manuscripts and artifacts. The Peutinger Map, a medieval map of the Roman Empire, is named after him and is considered one of the most important cartographic sources from antiquity.

In the 17th century, a Dutch artist named Kabel Fabritius (1622-1654) was a prominent figure in the Delft School of painting. Although his life was cut short by an explosion in a gunpowder store, his works, such as "The Goldfinch" and "The Sentry," are considered masterpieces of the Dutch Golden Age of painting.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Kabel over time

The chart below shows babies named Kabel registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 2016 to 2023. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Kabel, the clearest high point is 2022. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2023, compared with 5 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Kabel
01345201620192023

Decades

Kabel by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Kabel was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #4410 11 3
2010s #4780 6 2

Related

Names similar to Kabel

FAQ

Kabel: questions and answers

How popular is the name Kabel in the UK right now?

In 2023, Kabel was ranked #4991 for boys in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.

When was Kabel most popular?

The peak year on record was 2022, with 5 babies registered as Kabel in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Kabel?

A variant spelling of the English word "cable," deriving from the Latin "capulare.".

How many people are called Kabel in the UK?

A total of 17 babies have been registered as Kabel across the 5 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.