UK name, mostly boys
Michal
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "who is like God?".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Michal is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Michal popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #1162, with 24 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2011, with 148 births.
This profile covers 1,552 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, 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 16% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 1,740 living people in the UK are called Michal. 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 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Michal ranked #1162 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 24 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2011, when 148 boys were registered as Michal.
- • Michal ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #365 in 2018.
- • About 1,740 living people in the UK are estimated to have Michal as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 89.0% of Michal registrations are for boys.
Latest rank (E&W)
#1162
2024
Births in 2024
24
Latest year
Peak year
2011
148 births
Estimated living
1,740
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Michal
In England and Wales birth records, Michal has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 89.0% of registrations are for boys and 11.0% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Michal registered for boys
- Ranked #1,162 in 2024
- 24 boys registered in 2024
- Peak: 2011 (148 births)
Michal registered for girls
- Ranked #2,574 in 2024
- 10 girls registered in 2024
- Peak: 2011 (12 births)
Meaning
What does Michal mean?
The name Michal is a Hebrew name with biblical origins. It is derived from the Hebrew words "mi" meaning "who" and "kal" meaning "is like". The name can be translated to mean "who is like God" or "one who resembles God".
In the Hebrew Bible, Michal was the younger daughter of King Saul and the wife of David. She is first mentioned in 1 Samuel 14:49, where her name is listed among the members of Saul's family. The biblical account portrays Michal as a woman who loved David deeply and helped him escape from her father's wrath.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Michal can be found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of ancient Jewish manuscripts dating back to the 3rd century BCE. The name is also mentioned in the Talmud, a central text of Rabbinic Judaism compiled between the 3rd and 6th centuries CE.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Michal. One of the most famous was Michal, the daughter of King Saul, who lived around the 11th century BCE. Another notable Michal was Michal Sędek, a Polish Roman Catholic priest and martyr who was executed by the Nazis in 1942 for his involvement in the Polish resistance during World War II.
In the arts, Michal is the name of a character in the opera "Samson and Delilah" by Camille Saint-Saëns, which premiered in 1877. The name also appears in literature, such as in the novel "The Chosen" by Chaim Potok, published in 1967, where Michal is the daughter of a Hasidic rabbi.
Other notable figures with the name Michal include Michal Kalecki, a Polish economist who made significant contributions to the field of macroeconomics (1899-1970), and Michal Rovner, an Israeli multimedia artist known for her video installations and sculptures (born 1957).
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Michal over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Michal in England and Wales, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Michal, the clearest high point is 2011. The latest England and Wales figure is 24 births in 2024, compared with 148 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Michal by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Michal 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 | #934 | 183 | 5 |
| 2010s | #446 | 938 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1181 | 415 | 10 |
| 1990s | #2472 | 16 | 4 |
Geography
Where Michal is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Michal. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Michal ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #365 in 2018.
Across the UK
Michal in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#727 in 2024
18 years of NRS records, 139 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#365 in 2018
11 years of NISRA records, 60 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Michal
-
Michal Martychowiec
photographer
Polish artist
1987-
-
Michal Schonberg
opinion journalist; dramaturge; film historian
1945-
-
Michal Chantkowski
politician
Green Party candidate in the 2019 United Kingdom General Election
Related
Names similar to Michal
- Matthew 80,931
- Mohammed 74,321
- Muhammad 72,235
- Max 59,807
- Michael 47,075
- Mason 38,935
- Mohammad 25,910
- Morgan 15,994
- Muhammed 11,527
- Mark 11,336
- Marcus 11,257
- Maxwell 10,006
FAQ
Michal: questions and answers
How popular is the name Michal in the UK right now?
In 2024, Michal was ranked #1162 for boys in England and Wales, with 24 births registered.
When was Michal most popular?
The peak year on record was 2011, with 148 babies registered as Michal in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Michal?
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "who is like God?".
How many people are called Michal in the UK?
A total of 1,552 babies have been registered as Michal across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 139 more in Scotland and 60 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Michal most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Michal ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #365 in 2018. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
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.