Hebrew Names

Athalia was an Old Testament daughter of Jezebel and a king's powerful wife with a gory history. You don't wanna know -- and you probably don't wanna name your kid after her either. Pretty name, though, and one that's in step with the current fashions for A beginnings and endings as well as for distinctive names with deep roots. Atalia is a simplified spelling..

A lesser-known archangel, but the name is probably best known today on comedian Gadiel Del Orte. Thanks to him, and the trend for biblical-sounding names, Gadiel has been rising in recent years.

A name with a double animal connection via two distinct origins, one Native American and the other Hebrew and Biblical. Yona is rare in the US but not unknown: It was given to a dozen baby girls in 2021.

A male Biblical name meaning healer, Asa is also an international gem. In Japanese, it means "(born in the) morning". And in Scandinavia, where it's generally spelled Åsa or Ása and pronounced O-sa, it's a popular diminutive form of Old Norse names beginning with the element áss "god".

A traditional name still used in Orthodox families. Rivka is the original form of Rebekah or Rebecca, today used far more widely than the original. Rifka is a variation.

Fierce meaning, gentle image. This name is very common in Israel, where an endearing pet form is Dubi.

It would be easy to dismiss this girlish name as invented fluff, but it has roots in several cultures with evocative meanings and references. Shani refers to the "scarlet thread" or theme of a story. Shani is also the name of a Hindu god and the Sanskrit word for the planet Saturn. And it's a Swahili name also found in other African cultures that means marvelous.

The name of an Old Testament king, and yet another 'Z' choice from the Bible that still retains some zip, especially with the appealing nickname Zed. Zedekiah was the name of the last king of Judea before the city was destroyed by Babylon.

The name of the 44th president, which he inherited from his Kenyan father, is related to the Swahili word "baraka," meaning "blessing," derived from the Arabic "baracka." It is linked, through the Semitic root, to the Hebrew name Baruch. Barack is also sometimes an alternate spelling of the Hebrew name Barak, which stems from the Semitic word for "lightning." Barack Obama may have found it a difficult name to grow up with, but the same won't be true for the many babies starting to be given that name. Other parents are being inspired to use Obama, which is a common surname among the Luo people of East Africa meaning "to lean or bend."

Keturah, the Old Testament name of Abraham's second wife, is a possibility for anyone seeking a truly unusual and interesting biblical name; certainly a lot more distinctive than that of Abraham's first wife, Sarah.

Popular with the Puritans, this name of the shrewd and beautiful wife of King David and mother of King Solomon could be a bit of a load for a modern girl to carry.

Aram is a popular Armenian name with a pleasing sound that became known in this country through the works of William Saroyan, namely the 1940 book of short stories, My Name in Aram, centering on Aram Garoghlanian, a boy of Armenian descent growing up in Fresno, California. Saroyan also named his son Aram.

Adah is a biblical name twice over—one was the mother of Jabal and Jubal, the other was a wife of Esau. The latter Adah and Esau’s descendants settled in Edom and became the Edomites. Adah is unrelated to the visually similar name Ada, which is Germanic in origin.

Idan is a Hebrew unisex place-name rarely heard in this country.

Elisheva was the original name of Aaron's wife in the Book of Exodus; Elisheva gains strength and distinction via the v sound.

A Biblical name with a modern feel, Azaria is a spelling variation of the Hebrew name, Azariah. Used as a masculine name in the Bible, this spelling is now more commonly used on girls.

Nazareth, used equally for boys and girls, is one of several place names with religious associations -- Galilee, Jericho --that have been rising in use in recent years. The name may relate to branch or to the verb watch or guard, but there are many possible derivations and meanings.

Ayelet is an unusual -- and somewhat challenging -- Israeli name familiar thanks to sometimes controversial Jerusalem-born novelist-essayist Ayelet Waldman.

If you focus on the patience of the biblical Job, rather than his trials, the name becomes more usable. He was, after all, the Old Testament hero of the Book of Job, whose faith was severely tested by God but remained faithful. The name was was used by Puritans and Christian fundamentalists and can be found in the novels of Dickens, George Eliot and Robert Louis Stevenson..

Jorah, a Biblical name with a lovely nature-related meaning, might make a fresher alternative to the overused Jordan. It's similar to the feminine Nora, Cora, and Laura, but depending on your viewpoint, that may be an advantage.