Raquel is of Spanish origin, meaning 'spear'. It gained popularity as a female given name during the mid-20th century and remains in usage today, often used alongside its variant spellings such as Raquela and Rakel. The name Raquel has been used by notable figures including Israeli politician Raquel Guttman and Brazilian actress Raquel Welch.
"Raquel experienced varied popularity over the century, peaking in the late 70s to early 80s with peaks of 12-14 births per year, but declining thereafter, reaching as low as 5 by the mid-90s."