Fun Facts About the Name Bilal
- More than 5 thousand babies named Bilal: U.S. records list 5,862 babies given the name Bilal from 1880 through 2025. Even 5 girls received the name Bilal - about 1 girl for every 1,171 boys.
What Does the Name Bilal Mean?
Bilal is an Arabic name meaning "wet" or "moist." It comes from the Arabic root b-l-l (ب ل ل), which has the basic sense of moistening or wetting. The related verb balla (بَلَّ) means "to wet" or "to moisten," and the noun bilāl (بِلَال) is traditionally glossed as "moisture" or "wetness." The name is literal rather than theophoric: it does not contain a divine name or a religious phrase, but describes moisture or the act of moistening. Some later sources give looser renderings such as "refreshing" or "water," but these are interpretive extensions of the same root rather than a separate etymology.
Bilal Name History & Origins
Bilal is an Arabic given name. Its best-known early bearer is Bilal ibn Rabah (Bilāl ibn Rabāḥ), a companion of the Prophet Muhammad. He was of Ethiopian origin, enslaved in Mecca, and became one of the first converts to Islam. According to Islamic tradition, he was tortured for his faith and then freed by Abu Bakr. In Medina, he served as the muezzin - the one who calls Muslims to prayer - for the Prophet Muhammad, and he is traditionally remembered as the first muezzin of Islam. The main details of his life come from early Islamic biographical writing, which is traditional in nature, though the broad outline - that he was an enslaved early convert, freed by Abu Bakr, and a muezzin - is widely accepted in Muslim historical memory.
The name itself is an ordinary Arabic word-derived name, not a unique coinage. It is used in Arabic-speaking countries and in non-Arab Muslim communities, appearing in Turkish as Bilal, in Persian and Urdu as Bilāl, and in Bosnian as Bilal. In Islamic tradition it is closely associated with Bilal ibn Rabah, especially with his role as muezzin.
How Popular is the Name Bilal?
Bilal recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2018. Its best rank was #954 in 2002.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 | #16,489 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #1,212 | 167 | 0.0098% |
| 2024 | #1,181 | 175 | 0.0102% |
| 2023 | #1,159 | 179 | 0.0105% |
| 2022 | #1,200 | 166 | 0.0095% |
| 2021 | #1,253 | 152 | 0.0087% |
| 2020 | #1,288 | 141 | 0.0082% |
| 2019 | #1,239 | 152 | 0.0085% |
| 2018 | #1,040 | 195 | 0.0107% |
| 2017 | #1,132 | 168 | 0.0091% |
| 2016 | #1,149 | 167 | 0.0088% |
| 2015 | #1,217 | 151 | 0.0079% |
| 2014 | #1,225 | 149 | 0.0078% |
| 2013 | #1,262 | 138 | 0.0073% |
| 2012 | #1,173 | 155 | 0.0082% |
| 2011 | #1,109 | 166 | 0.0087% |
| 2010 | #1,258 | 139 | 0.0072% |
| 2009 | #1,220 | 147 | 0.0074% |
| 2008 | #1,252 | 139 | 0.0068% |
| 2007 | #1,288 | 135 | 0.0065% |
| 2006 | #1,322 | 124 | 0.0060% |
| 2005 | #1,139 | 142 | 0.0071% |
| 2004 | #1,072 | 149 | 0.0075% |
| 2003 | #1,060 | 146 | 0.0074% |
| 2002 | #954 | 168 | 0.0087% |
| 2001 | #1,060 | 136 | 0.0070% |
| 2000 | #1,071 | 133 | 0.0068% |
| 1999 | #1,130 | 116 | 0.0060% |
| 1998 | #1,190 | 104 | 0.0054% |
| 1997 | #1,006 | 127 | 0.0067% |
| 1996 | #1,195 | 95 | 0.0050% |
| 1995 | #1,126 | 103 | 0.0054% |
| 1994 | #1,141 | 99 | 0.0051% |
| 1993 | #1,144 | 97 | 0.0049% |
| 1992 | #1,058 | 107 | 0.0054% |
| 1991 | #981 | 119 | 0.0059% |
| 1990 | #1,037 | 104 | 0.0051% |
| 1989 | #1,030 | 100 | 0.0050% |
| 1988 | #1,467 | 52 | 0.0027% |
| 1987 | #1,296 | 57 | 0.0031% |
| 1986 | #1,363 | 52 | 0.0028% |
| 1985 | #1,597 | 40 | 0.0022% |
| 1984 | #1,426 | 45 | 0.0025% |
| 1983 | #1,493 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 1982 | #1,242 | 56 | 0.0031% |
| 1981 | #1,378 | 47 | 0.0026% |
| 1980 | #1,147 | 63 | 0.0035% |
| 1979 | #1,292 | 51 | 0.0030% |
| 1978 | #1,395 | 44 | 0.0027% |
| 1977 | #1,335 | 46 | 0.0028% |
| 1976 | #1,575 | 34 | 0.0022% |
| 1975 | #1,891 | 25 | 0.0016% |
| 1974 | #2,558 | 15 | 0.0010% |
| 1973 | #3,739 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1972 | #4,010 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1970 | #4,279 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1969 | #4,465 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1966 | #3,568 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1964 | #3,313 | 7 | 0.0004% |
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 Bilal Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You can go to great heights and equally great depths. You are emotional and fixed in your opinions. You are hospitable, sentimental, often psychic, sometimes moody. You are ruled by love and the lack of it and feel a need to be encouraged and appreciated. You are intuitive and might be interested in the arts, drama or science.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Bilal's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Bilal's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.