Given name & surname
Angela
“messenger”·“a heavenly messenger; an angel”
Angela is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “messenger” and “a heavenly messenger; an angel” (Greek). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original GreekΑγγελική
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “messenger” and “a heavenly messenger; an angel” (Greek). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
How it developed
Angela is a feminine form of Angelus.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Angela through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 675,392
- 2,135 boys · 673,257 girls
- Most popular year
- 1971
- 25,993 babies
- 2025
- 765
- #408 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −13%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 765 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 408 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 13.1% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 25,901 in 1971. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (120). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 600,162 as a first name in 2020; 341 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.
Angela’s family of names
In Slovenian usage, Angela has a diminutive in Angelina. Angela shares a linguistic root with Aniela. In English usage, Angela has a related form in Angel.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Angela has relatives in 33 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
Ancient Greekwhere Angela comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 38
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Angelvariant · English
- Angelinadiminutive · Slovene, English
- Angienickname · German, English
- Angelicavariant
- Angeliquevariant
- Angelinevariant
- Angelivariant
- Angelesvariant
Show 30 moreShow fewer
- Angeliavariant · German
- Angelitavariant
- Angelikavariant · German, Czech
- Angelynvariant
- Angellavariant
- Anjelicavariant
- Angelinvariant
- Angeleevariant
- Angelisavariant
- Angelettevariant
- Anjelavariant
- Angediminutive · English, French
- Anjelitavariant
- Anielkavariant
- Angelynnvariant
- Angellevariant
- Angellvariant
- Angelikivariant
- Angelettavariant
- Angelenavariant
- Angelevariant
- Angavariant
- Angelenevariant
- Anjelikavariant
- Muttinickname
- Anggelalikely variant
- Angyalkavariant
- Angiliavariant
- Angelkadiminutive · Slovak
- Andělkapet form
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 60
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- Ἄγγελοςroot · Ancient Greek
- ΑγγελικήGreek
- Anielacognate · Polish
- Angelusmasculine form · English, Latin
- Churchmasculine form
- Annelaequivalent
- Angéliqueequivalent
- Άτζελαequivalent
Show 52 moreShow fewer
- Άντζελαequivalent
- Анжэлаequivalent
- Αγγέλαequivalent
- Анхелаequivalent
- Anxelaequivalent
- Anselaequivalent
- Aungèleequivalent
- АнжелаRussian, Bulgarian
- АнджелаRussian, Bulgarian
- Angiùladescendant · rgn
- AngèleFrench
- ÀngelsCatalan
- Ongelarelated form
- Dangelisrelated form
- Ángelesequivalent
- Άντζυequivalent
- Angélicaequivalent
- Angelcaequivalent
- Antzelaequivalent
- Angiolaequivalent
- Anzhelaequivalent
- Αγγελίναequivalent
- Ingelaequivalent
- An-giê-laVietnamese
- Ángelacognate · Spanish
- ÀncilaSicilian
- AnđelaSerbo-Croatian
- А́нхелаRussian
- А́нгелаRussian
- А́нджелаRussian
- Анже́лаRussian
- ÂngelaPortuguese
- AnželaLatvian
- アンゲラJapanese
- アンジェラJapanese
- ᐋᓐᔨᓚInuktitut
- AngélaHungarian
- ანჯელაGeorgian
- ანგელაGeorgian
- ÁnxelaGalician
- AnĝelaEsperanto
- Andělacognate · Czech
- 安格拉Mandarin
- 安吉拉Mandarin
- 安杰拉Mandarin
- ÀngelaCatalan
- အင်ဂျလာBurmese
- AñjelaBreton
- Анжэ́лаBelarusian
- EngjëllikeAlbanian
- ZanzeVenetian
- Aingealcognate
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Angela
- Angela Merkelchancellor of Germany from 2005 to 2021 (born 1954)
- Isadora DuncanAmerican dancer and choreographer (1877–1927)
- Angela DavisAmerican political activist, scholar, and author (born 1944)
- Angela LansburyBritish-American-Irish actress and singer (1925–2022)
- Angela BassettAmerican actress (born 1958)
- Angela CarterEnglish novelist (1940–1992)
- Angela RaynerBritish politician (born 1980)
- Angela GheorghiuRomanian opera singerborn 1965
- Angela MericiFoundress of the Ursulines1474–1540
Characters named Angela: Mercy (the 2016 video game Overwatch), Angela Martin (The Office (US)).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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