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Rachel (given name)
Encyclopedia
Rachel is a feminine given name
. The name ranks in the top hundred most popular names for girls in the United States
, Canada
, England
and Wales
, Scotland
, Northern Ireland
, Ireland
, and Australia
as well as in Israel
. According to United States Social Security
card applications in 2005, the name Rachel ranked 38th out of the top 100 names chosen by parents for their baby girls.
Given name
A given name, in Western contexts often referred to as a first name, is a personal name that specifies and differentiates between members of a group of individuals, especially in a family, all of whose members usually share the same family name...
. The name ranks in the top hundred most popular names for girls in the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
and Wales
Wales
Wales is a country that is part of the United Kingdom and the island of Great Britain, bordered by England to its east and the Atlantic Ocean and Irish Sea to its west. It has a population of three million, and a total area of 20,779 km²...
, Scotland
Scotland
Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, and Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
as well as in Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
. According to United States Social Security
Social Security Administration
The United States Social Security Administration is an independent agency of the United States federal government that administers Social Security, a social insurance program consisting of retirement, disability, and survivors' benefits...
card applications in 2005, the name Rachel ranked 38th out of the top 100 names chosen by parents for their baby girls.
Variants
- Raakel (FinnishFinnish languageFinnish is the language spoken by the majority of the population in Finland Primarily for use by restaurant menus and by ethnic Finns outside Finland. It is one of the two official languages of Finland and an official minority language in Sweden. In Sweden, both standard Finnish and Meänkieli, a...
) - Raechel (EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) - Rachael (EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) - Racheal (EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) - Rachela (PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
) - Rachele (ItalianItalian languageItalian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
) - Rachelle(French)
- Racquel (EnglishEnglish languageEnglish is a West Germanic language that arose in the Anglo-Saxon kingdoms of England and spread into what was to become south-east Scotland under the influence of the Anglian medieval kingdom of Northumbria...
) - Raghnailt (IrishIrish languageIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
) (note that this name is etymologically unrelated to Rachel) - Ráhel (HungarianHungarian languageHungarian is a Uralic language, part of the Ugric group. With some 14 million speakers, it is one of the most widely spoken non-Indo-European languages in Europe....
) - Rahel/Rachel (GermanGerman languageGerman is a West Germanic language, related to and classified alongside English and Dutch. With an estimated 90 – 98 million native speakers, German is one of the world's major languages and is the most widely-spoken first language in the European Union....
, HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
, PolishPolish languagePolish is a language of the Lechitic subgroup of West Slavic languages, used throughout Poland and by Polish minorities in other countries...
) - Rahela (HawaiianHawaiian languageThe Hawaiian language is a Polynesian language that takes its name from Hawaii, the largest island in the tropical North Pacific archipelago where it developed. Hawaiian, along with English, is an official language of the state of Hawaii...
, RomanianRomanian languageRomanian Romanian Romanian (or Daco-Romanian; obsolete spellings Rumanian, Roumanian; self-designation: română, limba română ("the Romanian language") or românește (lit. "in Romanian") is a Romance language spoken by around 24 to 28 million people, primarily in Romania and Moldova...
) - Rahil (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
) - Ráichéal (IrishIrish languageIrish , also known as Irish Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Indo-European language family, originating in Ireland and historically spoken by the Irish people. Irish is now spoken as a first language by a minority of Irish people, as well as being a second language of a larger proportion of...
) - Rakel (Scandinavian)
- Rakhil (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
) - Rakhila (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
) - Rakul (FaroeseFaroese languageFaroese , is an Insular Nordic language spoken by 48,000 people in the Faroe Islands and about 25,000 Faroese people in Denmark and elsewhere...
) - Raquel (CatalanCatalan languageCatalan is a Romance language, the national and only official language of Andorra and a co-official language in the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands and Valencian Community, where it is known as Valencian , as well as in the city of Alghero, on the Italian island...
, (PortuguesePortuguese languagePortuguese is a Romance language that arose in the medieval Kingdom of Galicia, nowadays Galicia and Northern Portugal. The southern part of the Kingdom of Galicia became independent as the County of Portugal in 1095...
, SpanishSpanish languageSpanish , also known as Castilian , is a Romance language in the Ibero-Romance group that evolved from several languages and dialects in central-northern Iberia around the 9th century and gradually spread with the expansion of the Kingdom of Castile into central and southern Iberia during the...
) - Rashel (RussianRussian languageRussian is a Slavic language used primarily in Russia, Belarus, Uzbekistan, Kazakhstan, Tajikistan and Kyrgyzstan. It is an unofficial but widely spoken language in Ukraine, Moldova, Latvia, Turkmenistan and Estonia and, to a lesser extent, the other countries that were once constituent republics...
) - Rashka (HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
) - Rashke (HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
) - Rechell (HebrewHebrew languageHebrew is a Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Culturally, is it considered by Jews and other religious groups as the language of the Jewish people, though other Jewish languages had originated among diaspora Jews, and the Hebrew language is also used by non-Jewish groups, such...
) - Ruchel (YiddishYiddish languageYiddish is a High German language of Ashkenazi Jewish origin, spoken throughout the world. It developed as a fusion of German dialects with Hebrew, Aramaic, Slavic languages and traces of Romance languages...
)
People named Rachel
- RachelRachelRachel , as described in the Hebrew Bible, is a prophet and the favorite wife of Jacob, one of the three Biblical Patriarchs, and mother of Joseph and Benjamin. She was the daughter of Laban and the younger sister of Leah, Jacob's first wife...
, in the Bible, the wife of Jacob - Rachel (actress)Rachel (actress)Elisabeth "Eliza, or Élisa" Rachel Félix , better known only as Mademoiselle Rachel , was a French actress....
, 19th-century French actress (Elisabeth Rachel Félix, better known only as Rachel) - Rachel AllenRachel AllenRachel Allen is an Irish celebrity chef, known most widely for her work on television and as a writer.-Career as chef:...
, Irish celebrity chef - Rachel BilsonRachel BilsonRachel Sarah Bilson is an American actress. Bilson grew up in a California show business family, and made her television debut in 2003, subsequently becoming well known for playing Summer Roberts on the prime time drama series The O.C. Bilson made her film debut in the 2006 film The Last Kiss and...
, actress - Rachel BluwsteinRachel BluwsteinSela was a Hebrew poet who immigrated to Palestine in 1909. She is known by her first name, Rachel, or as Rachel the poetess .-Biography:...
, usually referred to solely as "Rachel", famous Israeli poet - Rachel BolanRachel BolanRachel Bolan is the bass guitar player and main songwriter of the metal band, Skid Row. He was born in Point Pleasant, New Jersey, USA, where he founded the band in 1986 with the guitarist Dave "The Snake" Sabo. Bolan has appeared as a vocalist on two of the Kiss guitarist Ace Frehley's solo...
, born James Southworth, bassist of Skid Row - Rachel CarsonRachel CarsonRachel Louise Carson was an American marine biologist and conservationist whose writings are credited with advancing the global environmental movement....
, environmentalist, scientist - Rachel CorrieRachel CorrieRachel Aliene Corrie was an American member of the International Solidarity Movement . She was killed in the Gaza Strip by an Israel Defence Forces bulldozer when she was standing or kneeling in front of a local Palestinian's home, thus acting as a human shield, attempting to prevent the IDF from...
, American political activist - Rachel Cosgrove PayesRachel Cosgrove PayesRachel R. Cosgrove Payes, also known as E.L. Arch and Joanne Kaye was an American genre novelist, and author of books on the Land of Oz...
, author - Rachel Entwistle, American murder victim
- Rachel G. Fox, actress
- Rachel FullerRachel FullerRachel Fuller is a British musician. She is a successful independent pop music artist, a composer and occasional collaborator with rock musician and partner to Pete Townshend.-Early life:...
, British singer-songwriter - Rachel HarrisRachel HarrisRachel Harris is a former freestyle and medley swimmer from Australia, who competed for her native country at the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, Australia....
, Australian swimmer - Rachel HunterRachel HunterRachel Hunter is a New Zealand born American model, actress and reality TV show host who now resides in the U.S. She is best known for her appearance in Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issues and her longtime marriage to singer Rod Stewart, which ended in 2006...
, model - Rachel Hurd-WoodRachel Hurd-WoodRachel Clare Hurd-Wood is an English actress. Her break-out role was as Wendy Darling in the 2003 movie Peter Pan.-Personal life:Rachel Hurd-Wood was born in London, England, the daughter of Philip and Sarah Hurd-Wood...
, British actress - Rachel Kolly d'AlbaRachel Kolly d'AlbaRachel Kolly d'Alba is a Swiss soloist violinist. Considered a child prodigy at the violin, she started playing at the age of 5.-Early life:...
, Swiss soloist violinist - Rachel MaddowRachel MaddowRachel Anne Maddow is an American television host and political commentator. Maddow hosts a nightly television show, The Rachel Maddow Show, on MSNBC. Her syndicated talk radio program, The Rachel Maddow Show, aired on Air America Radio...
, American journalist - Rachel McAdamsRachel McAdamsRachel Anne McAdams is a Canadian actress. After graduating from a theatre program at York University, Toronto in 2001, she worked steadily as an actress until finding fame in 2004 with starring roles in teen comedy Mean Girls and romantic drama The Notebook...
, Canadian actress - Rachel NicholsRachel Nichols (actress)Rachel Emily Nichols is an American actress and model. Nichols began modeling while attending Columbia University in New York City in the late 1990s...
, American actress - Rachel Nickell, British murder victim
- Rachel ParishRachel ParishRachel Parish is an English international sportswoman who won a shooting gold medal and silver medal at the 2006 Commonwealth Games in Melbourne. Before going to university, she went to Wellington College in Berkshire...
, British sportswoman - Rachel PortmanRachel PortmanRachel Mary Berkeley Portman, OBE is a British composer, best known for her film work. She was the first female composer to win an Academy Award in the category of Best Original Score...
, British composer - Rachel RathRachel RathRachel Rath is an Irish film, television and theatre actress.She has appeared in the films The Actors , Laws of Attraction , Ella Enchanted and ....
, actress - Rachel Rox, pornographic actress
- Rachel RyanRachel RyanRachel Ryan is an Shaker Heights, Ohio, American porn actress. who appeared in over 100 adult videos between 1985 and 1989. She has had many pseudonyms"I.-External links:*...
, actress - Rachel ReynoldsRachel ReynoldsRachel Reynolds is an American model and actress who is currently one of the models on the game show The Price Is Right....
, American actress and model on the TV game show The Price Is Right - Rachel ScottRachel ScottRachel Joy Scott was the first victim of the Columbine High School massacre, which claimed the lives of 12 students, one teacher and the two perpetrators, in one of the deadliest high school shootings in United States history.She has since been the subject of several books and is the...
, a victim in the Columbine High School massacre - Rachel SmithRachel SmithRachel Renee Smith is an American beauty queen and television personality from Clarksville, Tennessee, who won the Miss USA pageant in 2007 and who previously had competed in the Miss Teen USA pageant.-Early life:...
, Miss USA 2007 - Rachel StevensRachel StevensRachel Lauren Stevens is an English singer-songwriter, actress, presenter, dancer, television personality and model. She is a former member of the successful pop group S Club, and launched a solo recording career in 2003, releasing seven singles and two albums in the UK between 2003 and 2005...
, British pop singer, best known as a member of the band S Club 7 - Rachel StuartRachel StuartRachel Stuart is a Jamaican-Canadian model, actress and television personality.-Personal life:Stuart attended Mohawk College. Rachel Stuart is married to Paxton Baker, vice president of BET Digital Networks and has three children...
, Jamaican-Canadian model and actress - Rachel SutherlandRachel SutherlandRachel Anne Sutherland is a female field hockey player from New Zealand, who represented her native country at the 2004 Summer Olympics in Athens, Greece. There she finished in sixth place with the Women's National Team, wearing the number five jersey. Sutherland was affiliated with Emeralds,...
, New Zealand field hockey player - Rachel TrachtenburgRachel TrachtenburgRachel Sage Piña-Trachtenburg is an American musician, radio personality, model, singer, political and animal activist and actress from New York City. Trachtenburg is most notable for her key role as drummer and backup vocalist of the Trachtenburg Family Slideshow Players, a family band consisting...
, American rock singer and drummer - Rachel TrueRachel TrueRachel India True is an American film and television actress.-Career:In 1991, True had some appearances , beginning a string of TV jobs, including turns on Beverly Hills, 90210, The Drew Carey Show, Once and Again, and HBO's Dream On. By 1993, she had moved to Los Angeles and appeared opposite...
, actress - Rachel WalkerRachel Walker (field hockey)Rachel Walker is an English field hockey international, who was a member of the England and Great Britain women's field hockey team since making her England debut in June 2000 against Ireland. She is nicknamed Wacker.-References:**...
, English field hockey player - Rachel WeiszRachel WeiszRachel Hannah Weisz born 7 March 1970)is an English-American film and theatre actress and former fashion model. She started her acting career at Trinity Hall, Cambridge, where she co-founded the theatrical group Cambridge Talking Tongues...
, actress - Rachel YorkRachel YorkRachel York is an American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in City of Angels, The Scarlet Pimpernel, Les Misérables, Victor Victoria, Kiss Me, Kate, Sly Fox, and Dirty Rotten Scoundrels...
, actress
Fictional characters named Rachel
- Rachel BerryRachel Berry (Glee)Rachel Berry is a fictional character and de facto female lead from the Fox musical comedy-drama series Glee. The character is portrayed by actress Lea Michele, and has appeared in Glee from its pilot episode, first broadcast on May 19, 2009. Rachel was developed by Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Brad...
, a character in the television series Glee - Rachel Elizabeth Dare, a character in the young adult book series Percy Jackson and the Olympians
- Rachel Mason, Headmistress of Waterloo Road in the BBC drama Waterloo Road
- Naughty Rachel, a character in the British TV Series Green Wing
- Rachel, a supporting character (who later becomes playable in the Sigma re-make) in the 2004 Xbox video game, Ninja Gaiden
- Rachel (Animorphs)Rachel (Animorphs)Rachel is a fictional character from the sci-fi book series Animorphs. Her full name is never explicitly mentioned in the books, but her relation to her cousin Jake Berenson through their fathers makes it most likely to be Rachel Berenson, if it was never changed or hyphenated.-Biography:Before the...
, one of the six main characters of Animorphs - Rachel Carruthers, a character in the Halloween film series
- Rachel Gibson, a character in Season 5 of Alias
- Rachel GreenRachel GreenRachel Karen Green is a fictional character on the popular U.S. television sitcom Friends, portrayed by Jennifer Aniston. Aniston received an Emmy Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a Golden Globe for her performances.-Background:...
, a character in the TV series Friends- The Rachel haircut, a hairstyle popularized by the Friends character
- Rachel Greene , a character in the TV series ERER (TV series)ER is an American medical drama television series created by novelist Michael Crichton that aired on NBC from September 19, 1994 to April 2, 2009. It was produced by Constant c Productions and Amblin Entertainment, in association with Warner Bros. Television...
- Rachel Gatina, a character in the TV show One Tree Hill
- Rachel KinskiRachel KinskiRachel Kinski is a fictional character from the Australian soap opera Neighbours, played by Caitlin Stasey. She made her first on-screen appearance on 18 August 2005. She is the middle child of Alex Kinski and sister to Zeke and Katya. Rachel's storylines ranged from parental bereavement and first...
, a character in the Australian TV show Neighbours - Rachel Moore (Case Closed), of Case Closed (Detective Conan)
- Rachel SummersRachel SummersRachel Anne Summers is a fictional character, a comic book superheroine created by writer Chris Claremont and artist/co-writer John Byrne for Marvel Comics....
, a character in the Marvel Universe - Rachel Teller, a character in the Need for Speed Underground 2
- Rachael, a character in the 1982 film Blade Runner
- Rachel LangRachel LangRachel Lang is a fictional character who appeared in The Rage: Carrie 2, and well as being the protagonist of the film. She was portrayed by Emily Bergl, and is the half-sister of Carrie White, the protagonist of the original film.-Biography:...
, a character in The Rage: Carrie 2 - Rachel Brown, a character in the play Inherit the WindInherit the Wind (play)Inherit the Wind is a play by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee. The play, which debuted in 1955, is a parable that fictionalizes the 1925 Scopes "Monkey" Trial as a means to discuss the then-contemporary McCarthy trials.-Background:...