Thomas

TOM-us; Taw-ma; TO-mas
Aramaic
"twin"

Thomas Origin and Meaning

The name Thomas is a boy's name of Aramaic origin meaning "twin".

A solid classic with plenty of history, Thomas strikes the balance between strength and gentleness. A favorite in the UK, a staple in France, and Australia, and never absent from the US Top 100, Thomas feels like a safe bet and a name that fits into any era.

The Greek form of the Aramaic name Ta’oma, Thomas means “twin.” It came about in the Bible because there were too many apostles called Judas, and so, Thomas became the “twin”, to reflect his close brotherhood with Jesus.

Known as “Doubting Thomas” due to his initial skepticism of Jesus’s resurrection, he went on to become a martyr, and there was no need to doubt Thomas’s potential as a given name.

Brought into common usage by the Normans, it was then always among the 5 most common English names for boys at any point between the 13th and 19th century.

While it has fallen down the US charts in recent years, it remains a familiar and trusted choice. Given to over 6000 boys every year, it has made a steady climb back into the Top 50.

Across the pond in the UK, both Thomas and Tommy make the Top 30, while Tom, Tommy-Lee and Tommie have made their mark in the Top 1000.

As a well-established classic, Thomas naturally comes with plenty of noteworthy namesakes. “Thomas the Tank Engine” might appeal to you kids, but there’s also the theologian, Sir Thomas Aquinas, the cardinal Thomas Wolsey, the Founding Father, Thomas Jefferson. the philosopher, Thomas Hobbes, and the writer, Thomas Hardy.

More recent namesakes for those who aren’t into history include actors Tom Hardy, Tom Cruise, and Tom Hiddleston, singers Tom Parker and Tom Fletcher, Olympic diver Tom Daley, and Thomas Sanders, of YouTube fame.

A timeless all-rounder, Thomas comes with the intuitive nicknames, Tommy and Tom, which feel sweet for a child but not too cutesy for a grown-up. For more unexpected options, you could try the nature-inspired Moss or Scottish Tam.

Unlikely to go out of style anytime soon, Thomas is a refined but approachable choice. If the popularity does give you pause, however, you could try the surname-inspired Thompson, or an underused classic like Marius, Rufus, or Phinneas.

Alternatively, there is a wealth of interesting variants to ponder, from Italian Tommaso and Scottish Tavish to Croatian Tomo– and for girls, there’s Thomasina, Tomine and Tamsin.

# 41 in the US

Thomas Rank in US Top 1000

# 65 on Nameberry

Thomas Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Thomas Popularity

Famous People Named Thomas

  • (Stephen) Thomas
    King of Bosnia
  • Thomas the Slav
    Byzantine military commander
  • Thomas of Bayeux
    Archbishop of York
  • Thomas a Becket
    Archbishop of Canterbury
  • Thomas Aquinas
    Italian theologian
  • Thomas Wolsey
    English cardinal under Henry VIII
  • Thomas More
    English author, philosopher and statesman
  • Thomas Cranmer
    Archbishop of Canterbury
  • Thomas Jefferson
    3rd U.S. president and Founding Father
  • Thomas Paine
    American Revolutionary patriot
  • Thomas McDonagh
    Irish revolutionary leader and signatory
  • Thomas "Tom" Clarke
    Irish revolutionary leader and signatory
  • Thomas Hobbes
    British philosopher
  • Thomas Carmichael Hindman Jr.
    U.S. Congressman and Civil War general
  • Thomas "Tad" Lincoln
    son of U.S. President Abraham Lincoln
  • Thomas Alva Edison
    American inventor
  • Thomas Cruise Mapother IV
    birth name of Tom Cruise, American actor
  • Thomas Riley Marshall
    28th U.S. Vice President
  • Thomas Francis Bayard
    30th U.S. Secretary of State
  • Thomas Stearns "T.S." Eliot
    American,British poet
  • Thomas John "Tom" Brokaw
    American television journalist
  • Edward Thomas "Tom" Hardy
    English actor
  • Thomas Robert "Tom" Daley
    English Olympic Diver
  • (Christopher) Thomas Howell
    American actor
  • Thomas Andrew "Tom" Felton
    English actor
  • Thomas Playford
    33rd Premier of South Australia
  • Thomas Erdelyi
    birth name of Tommy Ramone, Hungarian,American drummer of The Ramones
  • Thomas Gregory Jackson
    birth name of Tommy James, American lead singer of The Shondells
  • Thomas Michael "Tom" Fletcher
    lead singer of English band McFly
  • Thomas Carlyle "Tom" Ford
    American fashion designer
  • Thomas Ellis Gibson
    American actor
  • Thomas Jeffrey "Tom" Hanks
    American actor
  • Thomas William "Tom" Hiddleston
    English actor
  • Thomas Stanley "Tom" Holland
    English actor
  • Thomas Kretschmann
    German actor
  • Thomas Moore
    Irish poet
  • Thomas Muller
    German footballer
  • Thomas Ian Nicholas
    American actor/musician
  • Thomas Anthony "Tom" Parker
    singer of British band The Wanted
  • Thomas Earl "Tom" Petty
    American singer,songwriter
  • Thomas Rhett
    American country music singer
  • Thomas Ruggles Pynchon
    American novelist
  • Thomas Edward "Tom" Sizemore
    American actor
  • Thomas James "Tommy" Tune
    American actor, singer, and dancer
  • Thomas John Patrick "Tom" Welling
    American actor
  • Thomas Joseph "T.J." Thyne
    American actor
  • Thomas Sadoski
    American actor
  • Thomas Albert Victor aka Tommaso Alberto Vittorio)
    Prince of Savoy, Duke of Genoa
  • Thomas Geoffrey "Tom" Wilkinson
    English actor
  • Thomas "Tommy" Lee (Bass)
    drummer of American band Mötley Crüe
  • Thomas Brodie
    Sangster, English actor
  • Thomas Mario "Tommy" Haas
    German tennis player
  • Thomas Sanders
    American internet personality
  • Thomas Luther "Luke" Bryan
    American country singer
  • Thomas Edward "Tommy" John Jr.
    American baseball pitcher
  • Thomas Nathaniel "Tommy" Ivan
    Canadian ice hockey manager
  • Thomas Maldwyn Pryce
    Welsh racing driver
  • Thomas Henry "Tommy" Bolt
    American golfer
  • Thomas P Stafford
    American astronaut
  • Thomas 'Tom' Crean
    Irish explorer
  • Thomas Hollis Smith
    son of William Smith & Abigail "Nabby" Adams
  • Thomas Hardy
    British poet and novelist
  • Thomas Moore
    British poet
  • Thomas Carlyle
    British essayist
  • Thomas Mann
    German novelist
  • Thomas Edward "T.E." Lawrence
    known as Lawrence of Arabia
  • Thomas James "Tom" Ridgewell
    British YouTube personality known as "TomSka"
  • Thomas Patrick "Tom" Cavanagh
    Canadian actor
  • Thomas Boone Quaid (b. 2007)
    son of American actor Dennis Quaid
  • Thomas David Black (b. 2008)
    son of American actor Jack Black
  • Thomas Williams
    child of Brady and Robyn Williams of TV's "My Five Wives"
  • Thomas Colton Padalecki (b. 2012)
    son of actors Jared and Genevieve Padalecki
  • Thomas Boyer "Bo" Bryan (b. 2008)
    son of country singer Luke Bryan
  • Thomas Miles Gaalswyk (b. 2016)
    son of singer Caitlyn Smith
  • Thomas South Moore (b. 2017)
    son of country music singer Justin Moore
  • Carl Thomas "Tom" Keifer
    Amerian musician and singer for the band Cinderella

Thomas in Pop Culture

  • "Thomas the Tank Engine
    " animated series and its main character
  • Thomas "Tom" Marvolo Riddle aka Lord Voldemort
    character in the Harry Potter series
  • Thomas Tanner
    character in Cassandra Clare's "The Infernal Devices"
  • Thomas
    character in Lauren DeStefano's "The Internment Chronicles"
  • Thomas Barrow
    character on TV's "Downton Abbey"
  • Thomas ¨Tom¨ Branson
    , character on TV's "Downton Abbey"
  • Thomas "Tom" Tarleton
    character in Margaret Mitchell's "Gone With the Wind"
  • Thomas Magnum
    main character on TV's "Magnum P.I."
  • Thomas Wayne
    character in DC Universe
  • Thomas "Tom" Lone
    character in DC Universe
  • Thomas "Tommy" Merlyn
    character in DC Universe
  • Thomas O'Malley
    cat in Disney' "The AristoCats"
  • Thomas J. Sennett
    character in movie "My Girl"
  • Thomas Carver
    character on TV's "Chasing Life"
  • Thomas H. Norstein
    character in anime "Digimon Data Squad"
  • Thomas Tomone
    character on TV's "Skins"
  • Thomas "Tom" Cat
    character in the Tom and Jerry cartoon series
  • Thomas "Tommy" Pickles
    character in animated series "Rugrats" and "All Grown Up"
  • Thomas Lasky
    main character in Halo 4: Forward Unto Dawn
  • Thomas "Tom" Wade
    main character in G. A. Henty's, In the Heart of the Rockies
  • Thomas
    character on animated series "Regular Show"
  • Thomas
    main character in book and movie "The Maze Runner"
  • Thomas Forrester
    character in soap opera "The Bold and the Beautiful"
  • Thomas "Tom" Hagen
    character in "Godfather"
  • Thomas "Tom" Hansen
    character in "500 Days of Summer"
  • Thomas
    character in the webcomic "Sun Rising"
  • Thomas Sharpe
    character in the movie "Crimson Peak"
  • Thomas Bryant
    character from Marie Lu's Legend series
  • Thomas J. Whitmore
    U.S. President in the 1996 Film "Independence Day" aka ID4 , and was the ex,President in the 2016 sequel "Resurgence"
  • Thomas Vanderbilt
    First President of the United Federation of Planets, in the Star Trek Franchise, according to memory,alpha.fandom.com
  • Thomas Light
    Doctor who appears in the Mega Man video game series, Dr. Light created Mega Man
  • Thomas "House" Conklin
    character in the "Police Academy" Film series
  • Thomas Jefferson "T.J." Hooker
    main character played by William Shatner in the police drama TV series "T.J. Hooker"
  • Thomas Veil
    main character in the TV series "Nowhere Man" which aired from 1995 to 1996 on UPN
  • Thomas
    from No Belonging RPG who's a SUCKER FOR FREEDOM OH MY GOD
  • Thomas Lightwood
    character in Cassandra Clare’s “The Last Hours” series