Given name & surname · also French
Adele
“of the nobility; serene; of good humor”
Adele brings together a Germanic root meaning “noble” and a history that runs from medieval saints to the opera stage.
Original FrenchAdèle
Meaning & origin
What it means
Adele is a variant of Adela. One German interpretation is “of the nobility; serene; of good humor.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
This spelling has been associated with French and Germanic naming traditions.
How it developed
In Finnish usage, Adele developed from the French form Adèle. In German usage, Adele is a short form of Adelheid.
The story
Adele was borne by a daughter of William the Conqueror who married Stephen of Blois and was later revered as a saint. A character in Johann Strauss’s Die Fledermaus helped bring the name back into English use in the late nineteenth century; Dornford Yates’s novels gave it another literary association in the 1930s.
Adele through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 42,373
- 11 boys · 42,362 girls
- Most popular year
- 1918
- 1,036 babies
- 2025
- 362
- #751 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −4%
- Steady
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 362 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 751 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 3.7% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,030 in 1918. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (55). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 19,901 as a first name in 2020; 165 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Adele’s family of names
In English usage, Adele has a diminutive in Adeline. In Finnish usage, Adele developed from the French form Adèle. Adele has a related form in Adela.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Adele has relatives in 7 languages. Lines run from its Proto-Germanic roots to each of them.
14 related names in 7 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 14
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 10
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Adèlecognate · French
- Aidaequivalent
- Adelleequivalent
- Eleequivalent
- Adeliceequivalent
- Adulaequivalent
- Adélaequivalent
- Adileequivalent
Show 2 moreShow fewer
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Adele
- AdeleEnglish singer-songwriter (born 1988)
- Emeli SandéBritish singerborn 1987
- Adele GoldbergAmerican computer scientist (born 1945)
- Adele JergensAmerican actress (1917–2002)
- Adele MaraAmerican actress (1923-2010)
- Adele GoldstineAmerican computer programmer (1920–1964)
- Adele NeuhauserAustrian actressborn 1959
- Adele AstaireAmerican dancer and entertainer (1896-1981)
- Adele SandrockGerman actress (1863-1937)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
Similar names
If you love Adele, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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