Rachel

How to say it

/ˈreɪ.tʃəl/

What it means

Hebrew Rachel, 'ewe' (female sheep). Jacob's beloved second wife in Genesis, mother of Joseph and Benjamin; her tomb on the road to Bethlehem is a Jewish pilgrimage site.

Rachel comes from the Hebrew Rachel ('ewe,' female sheep — a fitting name for a shepherd's daughter). In Genesis she's Jacob's beloved second wife, the one he worked fourteen years to marry; she's the mother of Joseph and Benjamin, and she dies in childbirth on the road to Bethlehem. Her tomb is a Jewish pilgrimage site. The English Rachel was a Puritan favorite, and Friends's Rachel Green (Jennifer Aniston, 1994-2004) made the name globally familiar to a Gen-X-and-Millennial audience — 'The Rachel' haircut is a still-current cultural reference. It's been in the US top 50 since 1980 and is sliding now. Common shorts: Rach, Rae.

Heads-up notes

• Pop culture

  Friends's Rachel Green and 'The Rachel' haircut (1995-1996) are the dominant Gen-X anchors; the biblical Rachel is the deeper one.

Who's worn it

Historical figures, characters, and public faces who share the name. The cultural surface, for whatever weight you want to give it.

• Rachel (Bible) Jacob's beloved second wife, mother of Joseph and Benjamin
• Rachel Green (Friends) Jennifer Aniston's character, 1994-2004
• Rachel Maddow American journalist and host of The Rachel Maddow Show

Spelling variants

• Rahel
• Raquel

Names with the same feeling

• Sarah Princess, noblewoman
• Leah Weary, or 'wild cow'
• Ruth Friend, companion
• Naomi Pleasant, my delight
• Hannah Favor, grace

See Rachel from another angle