Chantal

Did you know?

A few things about Chantal you might not know, from US birth records and Wikipedia. Handy for convincing a partner, or a grandparent.

⭐ Famous Chantal

Chantal Akerman

Belgian film director, screenwriter, and educator (1950–2015)

Choose Chantal and your child shares a first name with Chantal Akerman, a Belgian film director, screenwriter, and educator. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Chantal, like who?” Chantal Akerman's Wikipedia article is available in 45 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Chantal Akerman on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Mario De Munck, CC BY-SA 4.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 84,746 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Chantal, 19 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Chantal would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryChantal first shows up in US birth records in 1947, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 78 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1990, when it ranked #553. Today it's #6,116, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📉Then vs nowChantal was 6.8× more common in 2000 than it is today. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 12,438 baby girls; in 2025, about 1 in 84,746.
• 🍂TrendChantal has slipped 266 places over the last five years and now sits at #6,116. Good news if you want a familiar name that fewer kids will share.
• 💬MeaningIn French, Chantal means “stony place”.

About the name Chantal

Chantal is a girl name of French origin meaning “stony place”. It has 7 letters and 2 syllables, starting with C and ending in “-tal”. US birth records list Chantal for girls from 1947 to 2025, in 78 of those 79 years. Its best year was 1990, when it ranked #553 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #6,116, with 19 babies.

Origin:French names