Fun Facts About the Name Anela
- More than 1 thousand babies named Anela: U.S. records list 1,793 babies given the name Anela from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Anela Mean?
Anela means "angel." The name goes back to the Greek word angelos, "messenger," which early Christian writers used for heavenly messengers. That word passed into Latin as angelus and became the source of the feminine name Angela and its many forms in European languages. In Hawaiian, Anela is the local form of Angela, and anela is also the ordinary Hawaiian word for "angel." Hawaiian has no g sound, so the g of Angela is dropped and the name is rendered Anela.
Anela is also a given name in Bosnia and Herzegovina, where it is a simplified spelling of Anđela, the South Slavic form of Angela. The Hawaiian name and the South Slavic name therefore come from the same Greek root, so they share one etymology rather than two independent ones.
Anela Name History & Origins
The name family behind Anela begins with Greek angelos, "messenger," a word early Christians applied to angels. From Latin angelus came the feminine name Angela, which spread across Christian Europe; devotion to angels and the memory of figures such as Saint Angela Merici, the sixteenth-century founder of the Ursulines, kept the name in use. In the South Slavic languages the form Anđela became established, and Anela is a simplified spelling of that name used in Bosnia and Herzegovina.
In Hawaii, Anela serves as the form of Angela, and anela is the Hawaiian word for "angel." The word came into Hawaiian through nineteenth-century Christian missionary work and Bible translation, when English angel (from Old English engel, Latin angelus, Greek angelos) was fitted to Hawaiian sounds. With no g in the Hawaiian sound system, the consonant was lost and the word took the form anela; the Hawaiian Bible uses anela for angels, and the same word serves as the given name.
How Popular is the Name Anela?
Anela has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2007. Its best rank was #2,369 in 2003.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #2,903 | 58 | 0.0036% |
| 2024 | #3,012 | 54 | 0.0033% |
| 2023 | #3,139 | 52 | 0.0032% |
| 2022 | #3,175 | 51 | 0.0031% |
| 2021 | #3,344 | 47 | 0.0029% |
| 2020 | #4,014 | 35 | 0.0022% |
| 2019 | #3,929 | 37 | 0.0022% |
| 2018 | #5,014 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 2017 | #3,149 | 51 | 0.0030% |
| 2016 | #3,103 | 53 | 0.0030% |
| 2015 | #3,658 | 42 | 0.0024% |
| 2014 | #2,619 | 67 | 0.0038% |
| 2013 | #3,127 | 52 | 0.0030% |
| 2012 | #2,474 | 74 | 0.0042% |
| 2011 | #2,537 | 71 | 0.0040% |
| 2010 | #2,542 | 72 | 0.0041% |
| 2009 | #2,731 | 66 | 0.0036% |
| 2008 | #3,427 | 48 | 0.0025% |
| 2007 | #2,395 | 79 | 0.0041% |
| 2006 | #2,850 | 61 | 0.0032% |
| 2005 | #3,012 | 53 | 0.0029% |
| 2004 | #2,424 | 70 | 0.0038% |
| 2003 | #2,369 | 70 | 0.0038% |
| 2002 | #2,711 | 56 | 0.0031% |
| 2001 | #2,965 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 2000 | #3,408 | 39 | 0.0021% |
| 1999 | #3,896 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1998 | #3,839 | 30 | 0.0017% |
| 1997 | #4,380 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 1996 | #5,785 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1995 | #6,659 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1994 | #5,268 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 1993 | #10,670 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1992 | #11,829 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1991 | #7,456 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1990 | #6,146 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1989 | #10,927 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #7,734 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1987 | #7,389 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1986 | #4,979 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 1985 | #6,480 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1984 | #5,924 | 11 | 0.0007% |
| 1983 | #7,340 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1982 | #6,917 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1981 | #5,271 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1980 | #4,988 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1979 | #4,431 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 1978 | #4,946 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 1977 | #8,484 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1976 | #5,616 | 10 | 0.0007% |
| 1975 | #9,132 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1974 | #6,286 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1971 | #6,028 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1970 | #6,392 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1968 | #7,047 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #6,801 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1959 | #6,273 | 5 | 0.0002% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Anela Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You find the best contentment in life when you own your own home and provide well for your family and loved ones. You have a great sense of responsibility and duty. You are comforting, appreciative and affectionate. Your obligation in life is to hold justice and truth, and if you follow the Law, you can find the great happiness and satisfaction.
✦ Anela's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Anela's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.