Rafaela

Did you know?

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

⭐ Famous Rafaela

Rafaela Aparicio

Spanish actress

Choose Rafaela and your child shares a first name with Rafaela Aparicio, a Spanish actress. A ready-made answer when someone asks “Rafaela, like who?” Rafaela Aparicio's Wikipedia article is available in 20 languages, a good sign of just how widely known they are.

Read about Rafaela Aparicio on Wikipedia ↗ (opens in a new tab)

Photo: Ateneo de Córdoba, CC BY-SA 3.0 (opens in a new tab), via Wikimedia Commons

• 👶How commonAbout 1 in every 27,701 baby girls born in the US in 2025 was named Rafaela, 58 babies in all. In a typical school of 500 kids, your Rafaela would very likely be the only one.
• 📜HistoryRafaela first shows up in US birth records in 1887, the first year at least 5 babies got it. It has been in use for 138 years since.
• 🏆Best yearIt was far more popular in 1903, when it ranked #789. Today it's #2,895, so it could be due a comeback.
• 📈Then vs nowRafaela is 3.3× more common today than it was in 2000. In 2000 it was given to about 1 in 90,909 baby girls; in 2025, about 1 in 27,701.
• 🚀TrendRafaela has climbed 386 places in the US rankings over the last five years and now sits at #2,895. Fast risers like this often keep climbing, so expect to hear it more.
• 💬MeaningRafaela is a Spanish form of Raphael, which means “God heals”.

About the name Rafaela

Rafaela is a girl name meaning “God heals”. It has 7 letters and 3 syllables, starting with R and ending in “-ela”. US birth records list Rafaela for girls from 1887 to 2025, in 134 of those 139 years. Its best year was 1903, when it ranked #789 among girl names. In 2025 it ranked #2,895, with 58 babies.