Jephthah

The name of an important figure in the Book of Judges, a judge from Gilead who helped the Israelites defeat the hated Ammonites. Jephthah and its various derivative spellings have seldom been used as first names since Biblical times, but that may change going forward, thanks to Duck Dynasty castmember Jules Jeptha "Jep" Robertson.

There's also a Shakespearean connection: the Biblical story of Jephthah is discussed at some length in Act II of Hamlet.

Pronounced JEF-thuh.

As of October 2026, Jephthah ranked #13040 for boys in US births in 2018 SSA, peaked at #11309 for boys in 2015.