Opal

About Opal

Opal is an English gemstone name, ultimately linked with Sanskrit upala, jewel. Its short form evokes a stone known for shifting colors rather than one fixed shade. The name has returned to wider American use after a long decline, and Kate DiCamillo's Because of Winn-Dixie gives it a memorable fictional bearer in India Opal Buloni.

Meaning and the gemstone

The personal name comes from the English word opal. It belongs to the same broad tradition of gemstone names as Ruby and Pearl, though its sound and visual associations are distinct. Opaline is a related form, adding a longer ending.

Gem opal is hydrated silica. Its celebrated play-of-color occurs when light interacts with arrangements of tiny silica spheres inside the material. The flashes can change as the stone or viewing angle moves, making the gem's appearance unusually dynamic.

Opal is an October birthstone. Australia became a major commercial source in the 1890s, and the gemstone acquired a particularly strong association with that country. The name's connection is therefore both with jewelry and with a material whose structure creates an immediately recognizable optical effect.

Opal in Because of Winn-Dixie

Ten-year-old India Opal Buloni is the central character of Kate DiCamillo's Because of Winn-Dixie. She goes to a supermarket for groceries and comes home with a stray dog, whose name comes from the store where she finds him.

The dog helps Opal form friendships in her new community. He also gives her the courage to ask her father about her mother, who left when Opal was three. The story builds its emotional world through small encounters, family questions, and the unexpected relationships made possible by the dog.

Opal is the character's everyday name even though it is part of the fuller India Opal Buloni. This gives the gemstone name a warm and specific literary association, attached to a child's voice rather than simply to a decorative object.

The novel received a Newbery Honor and was adapted into a film. Its success has carried Opal to readers and viewers who may first encounter the name through the character rather than the stone.

Pronunciation and shape

Opal is pronounced OH-pul, with stress at the beginning and a reduced final vowel. It has two syllables and ends with an l sound. The initial long o is followed by a crisp p, giving the short name a clear change in sound midway through.

American popularity

Opal reached its strongest United States girls' ranking in 1911, at #81. Its largest annual count came in 1918, with 2,847 births. It later fell to #584 in 1950 and only 32 births in 2000.

The direction has since changed. Opal ranked #423 in 2025, with 740 girls. Its recent growth is a revival of an established early-twentieth-century name rather than the first appearance of a new gemstone choice.

How popular is Opal?

In 2025, Opal ranked #423 among girls in the United States, with 740 recorded uses. The U.S. birth records first list this spelling for girls in 1880; its largest annual count was 2,847 in 1918. Rankings count each spelling separately. They describe national use, so local familiarity can differ. The popularity chart shows whether the name has remained common, returned after a quieter period, or risen recently.