Given name
Gretel
“resembling a pearl”
Gretel is a variant of Greta. One German interpretation is “resembling a pearl.”
Original GermanMargarete
Meaning & origin
What it means
Gretel is a variant of Greta. One German interpretation is “resembling a pearl.”
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In English usage, Gretel is a diminutive of Margarete.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1915. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Gretel through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,514
- 0 boys · 1,514 girls
- Most popular year
- 2022
- 68 babies
- 2025
- 48
- #3,269 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +17%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 48 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 3,269 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 16.8% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (10). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,906 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.
Gretel’s family of names
In English usage, Gretel is a diminutive of Margarete. In English usage, Gretel has a conventional equivalent in the Italian form Rita. Gretel has a related form in Greta.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Gretel has relatives in 7 languages. Lines run from its German roots to each of them.
Nicknames & forms 5
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 13
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- MargotFrench
- MaggieEnglish
- RitaItalian
- Gretchenequivalent
- MagaliFrench
- Grettaequivalent
- Grethaequivalent
- Gretheequivalent
Show 5 moreShow fewer
People named Gretel
- Gretel BergmannGerman high jumper1914–2017
- Gretel AdornoGerman chemist (1902-1993)
- Gretel BeerAustrian-British author1921–2010
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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