US Popularity Rank: 53

Origin: Hebrew

Meaning: Man of God

A boy’s name of Hebrew origin, Gabriel is an angelic choice for baby. That’s because Gabriel is the name of the Archangel, who features prominently in both Christianity and Islam. In the Bible, Archangel Gabriel delivers the news of Jesus’s birth to Mary, while in Islam, he inspires Muhammad to write the Quran. Given this origin story, it’s perhaps unsurprising that Gabriel means “man of God.” While this makes it popular among parents of faith, the name isn’t only associated with religion. If you’re a literary buff, you may love that it evokes Columbian novelist Gabriel Garcia Marquez, author of such epics as One Hundred Years of Solitude and Love In the Time of Cholera. With such namesakes, baby Gabriel—or Gabe, for short—will never be short on inspiring role models.