Sam

English, diminutive of Samuel
"told by God"

Sam Origin and Meaning

The name Sam is a boy's name of Hebrew, English origin meaning "told by God".

Sam has long been used on its own for boys, as accepted standing by itself as it is as a short form of Samuel. Straightforward and down-to-earth, Sam is the name of the son of the co-stars of The Americans, Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys. Sam is one of the most popular names that start with S in the Western world, ranking higher in several European countries than it does in the US, where it's trended downward since the 19th century, though it's always been in the Top 1000.

# 672 in the US

Sam Rank in US Top 1000

# 586 on Nameberry

Sam Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Sam Popularity

Famous People Named Sam

  • Sam Shepard (nee Samuel Shepard Rogers III)
    American playwright and actor
  • Sam Wills
    prop comic
  • Samuel Atkinson "Sam" Waterston
    American actor
  • Nigel John Dermot "Sam" Neill
    New Zealand actor
  • Samuel Jacob "Sam" Bradford
    American football player
  • Sam Page
    (born Samuel L. Elliott), American actor
  • Sam Newton Battenberg Faulkner
    English singer,songwriter
  • Samuel George "Sam" Claflin
    English actor
  • Sam Rockwell
    American actor
  • Sam Lowry Hunt
    American singer,songwriter
  • Sam Fox
    son of Michael J. Fox
  • Sam Evans (b. 2016)
    son of Keri Russell and Matthew Rhys
  • Sam Griffiths
    Australian horse rider
  • Sam Brody Jenner
    American television personality
  • Sam H. Harris
    American producer and theater owner
  • Sam "SG" Lewis
    British DJ and producer

Sam in Pop Culture

  • Sam Harmon
    character in "Ocean's" series
  • Samwell "Sam" Tarley
    character on HBO's "Game of Thrones"
  • Sam Malone
    main character on NBC's "Cheers"
  • Samuel "Sam" Winchester
    main character on The CW's "Supernatural"
  • Sam Wilson
    aka Falcon, Marvel Comics character
  • Samwise "Sam" Gamgee
    hobbit from "The Lord of the Rings"
  • Sam Whitwickey
    main character in "Transformers" movies
  • Sam Evans
    character on Fox's "Glee"
  • Sam Healy
    character on Netflix's "Orange Is the New Black"
  • Sam Camden
    one of the twins on The CW's "7th Heaven"
  • Sam Conroy
    character in the movie "American Violet"
  • Sam Coyote
    character on CBS' "Walker, Texas Ranger"
  • Sam Roth
    character in Maggie Stiefvator's series "Wolves of Mercy Falls"
  • Sam Temple
    protagonist from "Gone" series
  • Sam Braddock
    character on CTV's "Flashpoint"
  • Samuel "Sam" Alexander
    aka Nova, Marvel superhero
  • Sam Radley
    character in the "Hardy Boys" series
  • Sam Hanna
    Special Agent on CBS' "NCIS: Los Angeles"
  • Sam Bell
    character in "Moon"
  • Sam the Onion Man
    character from the book and film "Holes"
  • Sam Sekemoto
    character in "The Sims 3" computer game
  • Sam Anderson
    character on AMC's "The Walking Dead"
  • Sam
    character on ABC's "Private Practice"
  • Sam
    character in the movie Lost Boys
  • Sam Lane
    character on The CW's "Supergirl"
  • Samuel Joseph "Sam" Scudder aka Mirror Master
    character on The CW's "The Flash"
  • Big Sam
    character in "Gone with the Wind"
  • Sam (Sam
    I,Am), character from "Green Eggs and Ham" by Dr. Seuss
  • Uncle Sam
    a character used to help the United States to recruit men into the military
  • Sam Quintana
    character in the young adult book "Aristotle and Dante Discover the Secrets of the Universe," by Benjamin Alire Sáenz.
  • Sam Scott
    character on Channel 4's "extr@"
  • Sam Cortland
    character in the "Throne of Glass" series by Sarah J. Maas
  • Sam Carmichael
    character in the "Mamma Mia!" musical and films
  • Sam
    dog detective character from cult franchise "Sam and Max"