Michelle is a given name, originally a variant of Michèle, the
French feminine form of
Michel, derived from the Hebrew name
Michael
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* he He ..., a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name
* Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
meaning "
Who is like God?".
The usual Latin feminine form of the name was
Michaela, with
Michael
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* he He ..., a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name
* Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
the
vernacular
Vernacular is the ordinary, informal, spoken language, spoken form of language, particularly when perceptual dialectology, perceived as having lower social status or less Prestige (sociolinguistics), prestige than standard language, which is mor ...
form for both men and women. The name was given in reference to the archangel
Michael
Michael may refer to:
People
* Michael (given name), a given name
* he He ..., a given name
* Michael (surname), including a list of people with the surname Michael
Given name
* Michael (bishop elect)">Michael (surname)">he He ..., a given nam ...
, a saint of the Roman Catholic Church. The usual French feminine form of the name was
Micheline. The name Michelle was rare until the 20th century. It became a popular name in France and later throughout the
Anglosphere
The Anglosphere, also known as the Anglo-American world, is a Western-led sphere of influence among the Anglophone countries. The core group of this sphere of influence comprises five developed countries that maintain close social, cultura ...
after 1930, popularized by French-born film actress
Michèle Morgan, who was born Simone Roussel. The name was further popularized by the 1965 hit
Beatles song "
Michelle". The name peaked in usage for American girls in 1968, when it was among the five most popular names for newborn girls. The name has since declined in popularity but remains in regular use in English-speaking as well as French-speaking countries.
[ ]
It is also a surname.
Variants and cognates
*
Albanian: Miçel
*
Arabic
Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
: ميشيل
*
Armenian: Միշել
*
Belarusian: Мішэль ( Mišeĺ)
*
Bengali: মিশেল ( Miśēla)
*
Bulgarian: Мишел, Микаела, Михаела
*
Chinese Simplified: 米歇尔 (Mǐ xiē ěr)
* Chinese Traditional: 米歇爾 (Mǐ xiē ěr)
*
Czech: Michaela, Michala
*
Danish: Mikaela, Mikkeline
*
Finnish: Mikaela
*
French: Michèle
*
Georgian: მიშელ (Mishel)
*
German: Michaela, Michi
*
Greek: Μιχαέλα
*
Gujarati: મિશેલ ( Miśēla)
*
Hebrew
Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...
: מישל
*
Hindi
Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...
: मिशेल ( Miśēla)
*
Hungarian: Mihaéla
*
Indonesian: Michelle, Michaela, Michela
*
Italian: Micaela, Michela, Michelina, Lina
*
Japanese: ミシェル ( Misheru)
*
Kannada
Kannada () is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly in the state of Karnataka in southwestern India, and spoken by a minority of the population in all neighbouring states. It has 44 million native speakers, and is additionally a ...
: ಮಿಚೆಲ್ (Micel)
*
Khmer: មីឆែល (Mee-chael)
*
Korean: 미셸 (Misyel)
*
Marathi: मिशेल ( Miśēla)
*
Mongolian: Мишээл ( Misheel)
*
Norwegian: Mikaela
*
Persian: میشل
*
Polish: Michalina
*
Portuguese: Micaela, Miguela
*
Punjabi: ਮਿਸ਼ੇਲ ( Miśēla)
*
Romanian: Mihaela
*
Russian: Мишель (Mishel')
*
Serbian: Мишел ( Mišel)
*
Slovak: Michaela
*
Slovene: Mihaela
*
Spanish: Micaela, Miguela
*
Swedish: Michaela, Mikaela
*
Tamil: மைக்கேல் ( Maikkēl)
*
Telugu: మిచెల్ ( Micel)
*
Thai: มิเชล (Michel)
*
Ukrainian: Михайлина (Mychajlyna)
*
Urdu
Urdu (; , , ) is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in South Asia. It is the Languages of Pakistan, national language and ''lingua franca'' of Pakistan. In India, it is an Eighth Schedule to the Constitution of Indi ...
: مشیل
*
Yiddish
Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...
: מישעל ( Myşʻl)
Notable people named Michelle
As given name
A–G
*
Michelle Akers (born 1966), American footballer
*
Michelle Andrews (born 1971), Australian field hockey midfielder
*
Michelle Ang (born 1983), New Zealand actress
*
Michelle Bachelet (born 1951), President of Chile
*
Michelle Barr (born 1978), Scottish footballer
*
Michelle Beadle (born 1975), American sportscaster
*
Michelle Boisseau (1955–2017), American poet
*
Michelle Boylan, Australian politician
*
Michelle Branch (born 1983), American rock singer
*
Michelle Bright (died 1999), Australian murder victim
*
Michelle Calkins, Canadian synchronized swimmer
*
Michelle Caruso-Cabrera (born 1967), CNBC reporter
*
Michelle Chamuel (born 1986), American singer
*
Michelle Chandler (born 1974), Australian basketball player
*
Michelle Chen (born 1983), Taiwanese actress
*
Michelle Chong (born 1977), Singaporean actress and director
*
Michelle Cliff (1946–2016), Jamaican-American author
*
Michelle Collins (born 1962), English actress and television presenter
*
Michelle Courtens (born 1981), Dutch singer, also known as "Michelle"
*
Michelle Cruz (born 1992), American soccer defender
*
Michelle Creber (born 1999), Canadian actress
*
Michelle Dee (born 1995), Filipino beauty queen and actress
*
Michelle Dilhara (born 1996), Sri Lankan actress
*
Michelle Dockery (born 1981), English actress
*
Michelle Dockrill (born 1959), Canadian politician
*
Michelle Duggar (née Ruark), American reality TV star
*
Michelle van Eimeren (born 1972), Australian model and beauty queen
*
Michelle Fairley, Northern Irish actress
*
Michelle Ferrari (born 1983), Italian pornographic actress and television personality
*
Michelle Forbes (born 1965), actress
*
Michelle Fournier (born 1977), Canadian hammer thrower
*
Michelle Gayle (born 1971), English singer and actress
*
Michelle Gildernew (born 1970),
Sinn Féin
Sinn Féin ( ; ; ) is an Irish republican and democratic socialist political party active in both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
The History of Sinn Féin, original Sinn Féin organisation was founded in 1905 by Arthur Griffit ...
Politician
*
Michelle Gooris, Dutch airline pilot and YouTuber
*
Michelle Gomez (born 1966), Scottish actress
*
Michelle Groskopf, street photographer
H–M
*
Michelle Hamer (artist) (born 1975), Australian visual artist
*
Michelle Hamer (author), Australian author and journalist
*
Michelle Hardwick (born 1976), English actress
*
Michelle Heaton (born 1979), British singer, TV personality and glamour model
*
Michelle Hodkin, American author
*
Michelle Hofmann, Australian politician
*
Michelle Hu (born 1990), Chinese actress
*
Michelle Hunziker (born 1977), Swiss television hostess, actress and fashion model
*
Michelle Jaggard-Lai (born 1969), retired to professional tennis player from Australia
*
Michelle Jenner (born 1986), Spanish actress
*
Michelle Jin (born 1974), professional Chinese American bodybuilder
*
Michelle Keegan (born 1987), English actress
*
Michelle Khare (born 1992), American YouTuber
*
Michelle Kroppen (born 1996), German archer
*
Michelle Kwan (born 1980), American figure skater
*
Michelle Laine, American fashion designer
*
Michelle Langstone (born 1979), New Zealand actress
*
Michelle Larcher de Brito (born 1993),
Portuguese tennis player
*
Michelle Leonard (born 1973), British singer and songwriter, now based in Berlin
*
Michelle Leslie (born 1981), Australian model
*
Michelle Lombardo (born 1983), American model and actress
*
Michelle Lujan Grisham (born 1959), American lawyer and politician
*
Michelle Madhok (born 1971), CEO of White Cat Media LLC
*
Michelle Malkin (born 1970), American political columnist
*
Michelle Marsh (born 1982), British
Page Three girl
*
Michelle McCool (born 1980), American retired professional wrestler and former middle school teacher
*
Michelle McManus (born 1980), Scottish pop singer who won ''
Pop Idol''
*
Michelle McLean (born 1972), former
Miss Universe (
1992) from
Namibia
Namibia, officially the Republic of Namibia, is a country on the west coast of Southern Africa. Its borders include the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Angola and Zambia to the north, Botswana to the east and South Africa to the south; in the no ...
*
Michelle Meldrum (1968–2008), guitarist
*
Michelle Meunier (born 1956), French politician
*
Michelle Christina Cerqueira Gomes Lopes (born 1989), Brazilian footballer
*
Michelle Monaghan (born 1976), American actress
*
Michelle Mone, Baroness Mone (born 1971), Scottish entrepreneur and parliamentarian
*
Michelle Monkhouse (1991–2011), Canadian fashion model
*
Michelle Mungall, Canadian politician
N–Z
*
Michelle Nicastro (1960–2010), American actress and singer
*
Michelle Obama
Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama ( Robinson; born January 17, 1964) is an American attorney and author who served as the first lady of the United States from 2009 to 2017, being married to Barack Obama, the 44th president of the United Stat ...
(born 1964), Former First Lady of the United States of America
*
Michelle Odinet, American lawyer
*
Michelle Ongkingco (born 1978), American actress
*
Michelle Payne (born 1985), Australian jockey and horse trainer
*
Michelle Pfeiffer (born 1958), American actress
*
Michelle Phillips
Holly Michelle Phillips ( Gilliam; born June 4, 1944) is an American singer, songwriter and actress. Described by ''Time (magazine), Time'' magazine as the "purest soprano in pop music", she rose to fame in the mid-1960s with the folk rock vocal ...
(born 1944), American actress, singer, and member of
The Mamas & the Papas
*
Michelle Reis (born 1970), Hong Kong former actress, model and beauty pageant titleholder
*
Michelle Rodriguez (born 1978), American actress
*
Michelle Rohl (born 1965), American race walker
*
Michelle Rojas (born 1987), American voice actress
*
Michelle Ruff, American voice actress
*
Michelle Ryan (born 1984), British actress
*
Michelle Ryan, Australian choreographer, artistic director of
Restless Dance Company
*
Michelle K. Ryan (born 1973), Australian psychologist and academic
*
Michelle Sagara (born 1963), Canadian author of fantasy literature
*
Michelle Saram (born 1974), Singaporean actress, singer and businesswoman
*
Michelle Sawatzky-Koop (born 1970), Canadian volleyball player
*
Michelle Senlis (1933–2020), French lyricist
*
Michelle Ray Smith (born 1974), American actress
*
Michelle Stephenson (born 1977), English singer-songwriter, known as ex member of the Spice Girls
*
Michelle Thrush (born 1967), Canadian actress
*
Michelle Tokarczyk (born 1953), American author and poet
*
Michelle Trachtenberg (1985–2025), American actress
*
Michelle Triola (1933–2009), American actress
*
Michelle Visage (born 1968), American media personality and judge on ''
RuPaul's Drag Race
''RuPaul's Drag Race'' is an American reality competition television series, the first in the Drag Race (franchise), ''Drag Race'' franchise, produced by World of Wonder (company), World of Wonder for Logo TV (season 1–8), WOW Presents Plus, ...
''
*
Michelle Wai (born 1984), Hong Kong actress
*
Michelle Wie (born 1989), American golfer
*
Michelle Williams (actress) (born 1980), American actress
*
Michelle Williams (singer) (born 1979), American R&B artist from singing group
Destiny's Child
Destiny's Child was an American girl group whose final lineup comprised Beyoncé, Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams (singer), Michelle Williams. The group began their musical career as Girl's Tyme, formed in 1990 in Hou ...
*
Michelle Wright (born 1961), Canadian country music artist
*
Michelle Ye (born 1980), Chinese actress and producer
*
Michelle Yeoh
Yeoh Choo Kheng (; born 6 August 1962), known professionally as Michelle Yeoh (), is a Malaysian actress. In a career spanning over four decades, Yeoh has appeared Michelle Yeoh filmography, in projects encompassing a wide array of genres, a ...
(born 1962), Malaysian-born Hong Kong actress
*
Michelle Yim (born 1956), Hong Kong actress
*
Michelle Zauner (born 1989), American musician, singer, songwriter, and author
As stage name
*
Michel'le (born 1970), hip hop artist in the 1980s and 1990s
*
Michelle (born 1972), German singer
As surname
*
Candice Michelle (born 1978), American model, actress and retired professional wrestler
*
Cara Michelle, American Playmate-of-the-month and actress
*
Janee Michelle (born 1946), American actress
*
Vicki Michelle (born 1950), British actress best known for playing as
Yvette Carte-Blanche from the British sitcom ''
'Allo 'Allo!''
Fictional characters
* Michelle, a chef girl from Nordcurrent's game, ''
Cooking Fever''
* Michelle, the character from
The Next Step, former member of A-Troupe and studio head, played Victoria Baldessara
*
Michelle Connor in the British soap opera ''
Coronation Street
''Coronation Street'' (colloquially referred to as ''Corrie'') is a British television soap opera created by ITV Granada, Granada Television and shown on ITV (TV network), ITV since 9 December 1960. The programme centres on a cobbled, terraced ...
''
*
Michelle Corrigan in the British soap opera ''
Doctors''
*
Michelle Chang in the ''
Tekken'' series of fighting games
* Michelle Crane in the 2013 film ''
Insidious: Chapter 2''
*
Michelle Dessler in the TV series ''
24''
*
Michelle Dubois in the TV series
'Allo 'Allo!''
*
Michelle Flaherty in the
''American Pie'' film series
*
Michelle Fowler in the British soap opera ''
EastEnders
''EastEnders'' is a British television soap opera created by Julia Smith (producer), Julia Smith and Tony Holland which has been broadcast on BBC One since February 1985. Set in the fictional borough of Walford in the East End of London, the ...
''
*
Michelle Peng in ''Juken Sentai Gekiranger''
*
Michelle Richardson in the TV series ''
Skins''
*
Michelle Scully in the Australian soap opera ''
Neighbours
''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera that has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons and ...
''
*
Michelle Tanner in the TV series ''
Full House
''Full House'' is an American television sitcom created by Jeff Franklin for American Broadcasting Company, ABC. The show is about the recently widowed father Danny Tanner who enlists his brother-in-law Jesse Katsopolis and childhood best friend ...
''
* Michelle Jones (
MJ) in the
Marvel Cinematic Universe film series
See also
*
Michele
*
Michela
*
Michel (name)
Michel is a name used today in France, Canada, Belgium and other French speaking countries, French-speaking countries. It can be both a given name and a surname of Hebrew origin, derived from , meaning ''Who Is Like God?'' The name is particul ...
*
Shelley (name)
References
{{given name, type=both
French feminine given names
English feminine given names
Feminine given names
English-language feminine given names