Given name & surname
Rafa
“one who is happy and prosperous”
Rafa is used as a given name and a surname. One Arabic interpretation is “one who is happy and prosperous.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Arabic interpretation is “one who is happy and prosperous.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Arabic.
How it developed
In Portuguese usage, Rafa is a diminutive of Rafael.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1998. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Rafa through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 205
- 138 boys · 67 girls
- Most popular year
- 2023
- 27 babies
- 2025
- 17
- #5,557 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +159%
- Rising fast
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 17 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 5,557 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. In 2025, Florida had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (5). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 691 as a first name in 2020; 205 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.
Rafa’s family of names
In Portuguese usage, Rafa is a diminutive of Rafael. In Portuguese usage, Rafa has a conventional equivalent in the English form Rafe. In English usage, Rafa is a diminutive of Raphael.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Around the world
Rafa has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.
8 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 11
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Rafaelfull form · Spanish, Portuguese
- Raphaelfull form · English
- Rafefull form · English
- Rafaelafull form · Portuguese
- Raphaelafull form · English
- Rafahvariant
- Raelenefull form
- Raffahvariant
Show 3 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Rafa
- Rafa SilvaPortuguese footballer (born 1993)
- Rafa MirSpanish association football playerborn 1997
- RafaSpanish footballerborn 1985
- Rafa JordàSpanish footballerborn 1984
- Rafa NavarroSpanish association football playerborn 1994
- Rafa MartínezSpanish basketball player (born 1982)
- Rafa GarcíaSpanish footballerborn 1986
- Rafa Cabrera-Belloprofessional golferborn 1984
- Rafa LuzBrazilian basketball player (born 1992)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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