Hebrew Names

Mattie ranked among the Top 1000 for boys a century ago, in the heyday of the nickname-name. Today, few parents would dream of putting it on the birth certificate, preferring it as a short form for the perennially-popular Matthew. Mattie is in the Top 1000 in the U.S. for girls.

A variation of the Old Testament Bithiah, Batya is a Hebrew variant of the name. Derived from bat meaning "daughter" and yah meaning "Yahweh", Batya (or Bithiah) is the name of one of Pharaoh's daughters, often depicted as the one to take Moses out of the Nile.

Little-used name borne by several biblical figures including a king. It would make an unexpected way to get the nickname Eli - or Kim.

Jadon is the original Biblical form of this name, but Jayden is by far the most popular spelling, currently in the Top 20. Jaydon is borrowing from both versions, but not improving the name in the process. At Number 999 in 2015, it's in danger of dropping of the charts for good.

The Biblical Abijah might be temporarily lost to time, but this antiquated short form could move with it into the modern era.

More familiar to English speakers as Reuben, Jacob and Leah's first son and a founder of one of the Tribes of Israel.

A lively, zippy name that is surprisingly rare in the US. It was the name of two men mentioned in the Bible, but is feminine in modern times.

A symbolic name for boys born during a period between Passover and Shavuot.

The "Tz" beginning of Tzofia represents the Hebrew letter tzadi, which is pronounced more like ts. So Tzofia sounds like Sofia with a light t at the beginning — intriguing, but a difficult sound for a native English speaker to reproduce. While Tzofia is a distinct name from the megapopular Sophia and Sofia, many people will hear it as a cognate and pronounce it the same...or like Zofia.

More orthodox spelling of a name that also appears as Hazaiah and Hazaia. An obscure Biblical choice that has some modern zest.

Benevolent name found in Israel in several forms, including Doran and Doroni.

A Hebrew name also used for girls, with many variations to choose from. Hadara is another version. The name is associated with the holiday of Sukkot.

Lazer has some biblical cred as a form of Eliezer, Eleazar, or Lazarus, all relatives, and it's also a modern bad boy name a la Ranger and Breaker. Our recommendation would be to use one of the biblical forms as the proper name and Lazer as a nickname.

Kelila, which can also be spelled Kelilah, is a more distinctive and attractive Kayla relative.

The name of nine minor male biblical characters, this could easily make a gender switch as a singular substitution for the popular Mariah. It has also spawned the popular gender-neutral name Amaris, used for 300 baby girls and 100 baby boys last year, along with spelling variation Amarys.

A rarely heard Hebrew name whose zippy first initial Z transforms it from dated Yetta-like image to more lively Catherine Zeta Jones-like appeal.

This name of the final service on Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement, is sometimes given symbolically to girls born on that day.

A feminization of Adam with several sweet nickname options — Addie, Ada, Minnie, or Mina being a few.

A French name that's lost its chic.