Hebrew Names for Services

The Biblical form of Eve. English speakers may find the forms Ava or Eve easier in everyday life, but Chava is a lovely variation for a family that speaks Hebrew or Yiddish.

Fierce meaning, gentle image. This name is very common in Israel, where an endearing pet form is Dubi.

Naomi was once a primarily Jewish name from the Old Testament that referenced the mother-in-law of Ruth. Because of this, it is a symbolic name given to girls on Shavuot when the story of Ruth is read in the synagogue.

For jet-setting parents or those with many cultural backgrounds, a name that is workable across various languages is often a priority. Natan is a great option, as it is a familiar name in many European countries. It is currently most popular in Poland but seeing significant use in Israel as well.

Short and slight, with great potential now that names like Ava, Ida and Orla are popular. Ora Beach is a tourist destination on Seram Island, Indonesia.

A heroic figure in Exodus, Puah was a midwife during the Egyptian captivity who disobeyed Pharaoh's order to kill all male Jews at birth.

Jewish parents in particular may be drawn to this quiet, composed name of the first king of Israel and the name of Saint Paul before his conversion. In modern times, it has been associated with Nobel Prize-winning novelist Saul Bellow. Its meaning makes it appropriate for a long-awaited child.

Saul is a character in a John Dryden poem, and heard in the Handel oratorio, "Saul."

In the Bible this was the name of a midwife who helped deliver Moses.

Popular Israeli choice, ripe for adoption here. Parents who great up in the 1980s may remember animated heroine Shira, Princess of Power.

Solomon, a name that evokes wisdom and peace, is an Old Testament name that, along with other patriarchal classics, is finally beginning to shed its long white beard and step from the pages of the Old Testament into modern nurseries.

The original Hebrew form of Jacob, the Number 1 boy's name in the country, is still used in some religious families.

This modernized version of Yehudah could be assimilated further by making it Judah. The name is traditionally given to boys born at Chanukah. It first appeared on the US Top 1000 in 2001.

Stuck in the Old Country.

Has taken on a musical tone via the great violinist, Itzhak Perlman.