Hamish
About Hamish
Just as Seamus/Seumus is Irish for James, Hamish is the Scottish form — one that's not often used here, but still redolent of Olde Scotland. If you're ready to go further than Duncan and Malcolm, out to Laird and Ewan territory, this may be worth consideration. It also sounds just like the Yiddish word for homey.
In Scotland, where it became popular in the second half of the nineteenth century, Hamish is a nickname for a Highlander, and it's a high-ranking name in South Australia, where it's currently in the Top 50.
Some people may have become familiar with Hamish via one of the grooms in Four Weddings and a Funeral.
Pronounced HAM-ish.
As of October 2026, Hamish ranked #6240 in US births in 2025 SSA, peaked at #4149 in 2021, Nameberry popularity #441.
Editor: Pamela Redmond
Sources: US popularity data is from the Social Security Administration. Meanings and origins are from Nameberry's name references.
Popularity & trends
Data table
| Year | US rank | Births | Per million |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2014 | #4,755 | 20 | 10.4 |
| 2015 | #4,602 | 21 | 11 |
| 2016 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2017 | #4,153 | 25 | 13.5 |
| 2018 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2019 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2020 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2021 | #4,149 | 25 | 14.3 |
| 2022 | #4,608 | 22 | 12.6 |
| 2023 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2024 | — | 0 | 0 |
| 2025 | — | 0 | 0 |
World rankings
Similar names
These 20 names were selected by our users looking for other names like Hamish.
- Fergus
- Malachai
- Angus
- Abner
- Darcy
- Seamus
- Edmond
- Clive
- Fitzwilliam
- Solomon
- Ewan
- Laurie
- Archibald
- Amos
- Oswald
- Lionel
- Irving
- Boaz
- Wallace
- Barnaby
Hamish on lists
Famous Hamishs
- Hamish Linklater
American actor
- Hamish Donald Blake
Australian comedian
- Hamish Bowles
English fashion journalist
- (James) Hamish Stuart
Scottish musician of the Average White Band
- Hamish Hartlett
Australian rules footballer
- Hamish McIntosh
Australian rules footballer
- Hamish John Hamilton Marshall
New Zealand cricketer; twin brother James Marshall
- Milo Hamish Ferguson (b. 2001)
son of TV host and actor Craig Ferguson
- Hamish Carter
gymnast for Scotland and Great Britain
- Hamish Macdonald
Australian broadcast journalist and news presenter
Hamish in pop culture
- Hamish "Hammie" McPherson
character in comic strip "Baby Blues"
- Hamish
character in movie "Braveheart"
- Hamish
brother of Merida in Pixar's 'Brave," triplet brothers Harris and Hubert
- Hamish Ascot
Alice's would,be fiance in movie "Alice in Wonderland"
- "Hamish Macbeth
" series by M. C. Beaton, British TV series, and its main character
- Hamish Alexander
character in the Honorverse series by David Weber
- Hamish and Dougal
characters on British radio comedy series "I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue" and "You'll Have Had Your Tea"
- John Hamish Watson
character in Arthur Conan Doyle's Sherlock Holmes series
- Hamish MacKenzie
character in the Outlander series by Diana Gabaldon