Obadiah

Hebrew

"servant of God"

Obadiah Origin and Meaning

The name Obadiah is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "servant of God".

For the seriously audacious biblical baby namer who wants to move beyond Elijah and Josiah, this name has considerable old-fangled charm. Obadiah, who gave his name to one of the shortest books in the Bible, was a rich man who had the gift of prophecy. There are several other men named Obadiah in the Bible, as well as a Saint Obadiah.

More recently, star basketball player Obi Toppin's formal name is Obadiah, after his father. There have been two prominent U.S. senators named Obadiah.

In literature, there is an Obadiah in Laurence Sterne's novel Tristan Shandy, one in Tobias Smollett's The Expedition of Humphry Clinker, and another in Anthony Trollope's Barchester Towers--as well as a villain in the Iron Man series.

Obadiah Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

# 2493 on Nameberry

Popularity of the name Obadiah

• 1683 Nameberry 2024
• 412 Unique 2024

20 Names Similar to Obadiah

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Obadiah.

• Warwick
• Armand
• Alphonse
• Tybalt
• Raoul
• Thaddaeus
• Ishmael
• Heinrich
• Franz
• Vivian
• Beauregard
• Augustin
• Zebediah
• Marion
• Gregor
• Alonzo
• Godfrey
• Elisha
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Famous People Named Obadiah

• Obadiah grandson of Uzzi, brother of Michael, of the tribe of Issachar (1 Chr. 7:3)
• Obadiah follower of David (1 Chr. 12:9)
• Obadiah prince in King Jehoshaphat's day (2 Chr. 17:7)
• Obadiah Levite overseer of Temple repairers in King Josiah's day (2 Chr. 34:12)
• Obadiah son of Azel, descendant of King Saul's son Jonathan (1 Chr. 8:38)
• Obadiah of the House of David (1 Chr. 3:21)
• Obadiah Levite who dwelt at Jerusalem, son of Shemaiah (1 Chr. 9:16)
• Obadiah son of Jehiel; returned to Israel with Ezra (Ezra 8:9)
• Obadiah ben Abraham Italian rabbi and commentator on the Mishnah
• Obadiah German U.S. Senator from New York
• Obadiah Gardner U.S. Senator from Maine
• Obadiah Tarumbwa Zimbabwean footballer
• Obadiah Nelson "Obie" Trotter American,Hungarian basketball player
• Obadiah ben Abraham of Bartenura Italian rabbi
• Obadiah the Proselyte Italian,Jewish convert
• Obadiah Newcomb Bush American prospector; founder of the Bush dynasty
• Obadiah Parker stage name of Mat Weddle, American singer,songwriter
• Obadiah ben Jacob Sforno Italian rabbi

The name Obadiah in Pop Culture

• Obadiah Stane villain in the Iron Man series
• Obadiah Starbuck protagonist of a series of picture books about the life of a Quaker boy on Nantucket Island
• Obadiah Prim Quaker guardian of Anne Lovely in Susanna Centlivre's play A Bold Stroke for a Wife (1718)
• Lieutenant Obadiah Lismahago fantastic Scottish soldier in The Expedition of Humphry Clinker (1771) by Tobias Smollett
• Obadiah Hakeswill character in the Sharpe series by Bernard Cornwell