Given name & surname · also Hindi, Hebrew
Amal
“one with dreams and aspirations”·“a hardworking man”·“one who is pure”
Amal is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “one with dreams and aspirations”, “a hardworking man”, “one who is pure”, and “filled with hope”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Original Hebrewעמל
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “one with dreams and aspirations”, “a hardworking man”, “one who is pure”, and “filled with hope”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1962. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Amal appears in 1 Chronicles 7:35.
From biblical name research
Amal through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 4,513
- 372 boys · 4,141 girls
- Most popular year
- 2021
- 247 babies
- 2025
- 197
- #1,241 for girls · #5,620 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +16%
- Rising
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 5% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 181 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 1,241 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 14.6% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 16 birth records for boys in 2025. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (28). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 9,015 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Amal’s family of names
Amal has a related form in Amel. Amal has a related form in Amalie. Amal has a related form in Amala.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 13
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Amalievariant
- Amelvariant
- Amalivariant
- Amalavariant
- Amalyvariant
- Amaleevariant
- Amaleighvariant
- Amaleavariant
Show 5 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Amal
- Amal ClooneyLebanese-British-French barrister and human right activistborn 1978
- Amal AyouchMoroccan pharmacist and actressborn 1966
- Amal Al QubaisiEmirati politicianborn 1969
- Amal AdenNorwegian non-fiction writerborn 1983
- Amal MaherEgyptian singer and actressborn 1985
- Amal HijaziLebanese actress and singerborn 1977
- Amal El-MohtarCanadian poet and speculative fiction writerborn 1984
- Amal Nasser el-DinIsraeli druze politician1928–2025
- Amal KhalilLebanese journalist1984–2026
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Amal, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Imane
“faith”
>99% girls
Ramatoulaye
“mercy of God”
>99% girls
Arya
“one who is noble and honored”
2% boys · 98% girls
Gracelynn
Gracelynn is a variant of Grace. As a name, Grace carries the word’s association with divine favour. Grace’s meaning comes from a vocabulary word rather than a compound of older personal names.
>99% girls
Adhara
>99% girls
Amatullah
Amatullah is a feminine given name from Arabic.
>99% girls
Alaia
“one who is majestic, of high worth” · “joy”
>99% girls
Safiya
“one who is pure” · “having the lion's share”
>99% girls