Given name & surname · also Sanskrit
Kamal
“the perfect man”
Kamal is used as a given name and a surname. One Arabic interpretation is “the perfect man.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Arabic interpretation is “the perfect man.”
Where it comes from
This spelling has been associated with Sanskrit and Arabic naming traditions.
How it developed
It comes from the Sanskrit word kamala, meaning “pale-red.”
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1946. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Kamal through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 3,101
- 3,076 boys · 25 girls
- Most popular year
- 2009
- 97 babies
- 2025
- 43
- #2,907 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −11%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 43 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 2,907 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 11.3% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 97 in 2009. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 7,855 as a first name in 2020; 3,876 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.
Kamal’s family of names
In English usage, Kamal shares an earlier linguistic root with Kamala. Kamal has a related form in Kamil. Kamal has a feminine form in Kamala.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Kamal has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.
5 related names in 5 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Kamilvariant
- Kamylvariant
- Kameilvariant
- Kamealvariant
- Kameelvariant
- Kamaalvariant
- Kammallikely variant
- Kəmalvariant · Azerbaijani
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 5
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 3
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 Kamal
- Kamal HaasanIndian actor, activist and joker (born 1954 )
- Casey KasemAmerican voice actor (1932–2014)
- Kamal JumblattLebanese politician (1917-1977)
- Kamal Ganzouriformer Egyptian Prime minister (1933-2021)
- Kamal RanadiveIndian biologist1917–2001
- Kamal MillerCanadian soccer playerborn 1997
- Kamal KharaziIranian academic and politician1944–2026
- Sharath KamalIndian table tennis playerborn 1982
- Kamal NathIndian politicianborn 1946
Characters named Kamal: Kamal Khan.
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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