The name Ethel reached its peak in 1918, with 8,075 registrations (ranked #28). It first surfaced in U.S. records in 1880, roughly 38 years before its peak. Since the peak, the name has eased to well outside the top 1,000 (around #5418) today, averaging about 25 new babies per year. Ethel's usage has held roughly steady recently. Across all years on record, approximately 280,380 American babies have carried this name.