Moses

Egyptian
"delivered from the water"

Moses Origin and Meaning

The name Moses is a boy's name of Egyptian origin meaning "delivered from the water".

Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin's choice of this white-bearded Old Testament name helped bring it into the modern age, along with brethren Elijah, Isaiah and Isaac. User-friendly nicknames include Moe and Mose.

The biblical story of Moses is, of course, one of the most familiar from the Old Testament -- Moses being found as a baby in the bulrushes, growing up to lead the Israelites out of Egyptian bondage and into the Promised Land, then bringing down the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai.

Moshe, as in Israeli statesman Dayan, is the original Hebrew form of the name. In Spanish, it is Moises, and in Yiddish, Moishe.

A namesake from the world of sports is NBA Hall of Famer Moses Malone. Mose Allison, meanwhile, is a jazz blues pianist and singer.

# 557 in the US

Moses Rank in US Top 1000

# 1007 on Nameberry

Moses Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Moses Popularity

Famous People Named Moses

  • Moses
    Biblical prophet
  • Moses Maimonides
    medieval Spanish philosopher and Torah scholar
  • Moses Mendelssohn
    German philosopher, "father of Reform Judaism"
  • Moses Malone
    American basketball player
  • Moses Montefiore
    Italian,British philanthropist
  • Moses Fleetwood "Fleet" Walker
    American baseball player
  • Moses Soyer
    Russian/American artist; twin brother Raphael Soyer
  • Moses Mortimer Barrett III aka Petey Pablo
    American rapper
  • Moses Chan
    Hong Kong actor
  • Moses Amadeus Farrow
    son of actress Mia Farrow and director Woody Allen
  • Moses Bruce Anthony Martin (b. 2006)
    son of actress Gwyneth Paltrow and musician Chris Martin
  • Callum Ryan Moses Schweain (b. 2010)
    son of singer Kristin Swinford,Schweain of ZOEgirl
  • Rick Moses
    American actor
  • William R. Moses
    American actor
  • Joseph "Joe" Moses
    American comedian

Moses in Pop Culture

  • Moses
    a main character in movie "Attack the Block"
  • Moses Agency
    character in movie "Diamonds"
  • Moses Willow Jane Grace "Mosey" Slocumb
    female character in the novel "A Grown,Up Kind Of Pretty" by Joshilyn Jackson
  • Archie Moses
    character in movie "Bulletproof"
  • Moses Hightower
    character in the "Police Academy" Film series