Benjamin

Benjamin: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “son of the right hand”
Origin: Hebrew
Say it: BEN-juh-min · 3 syllables
Used for: Boys

Biblical name borne by Jacob's youngest son in Genesis. Also interpreted traditionally as 'son of the south' in Hebrew context.

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How popular is Benjamin?

20242,950 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Benjamin in 20249,820

2024 rank#11 boys

Peak year1981

Total US babies since 1880819,436

Benjamin has been fairly stable over the last fifteen years.

Names like Benjamin

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Benson · Hebrew
Bennieson of the right hand · English
Noahrest; comfort · Hebrew
Jamessupplanter · Hebrew
Elijahmy God is Yahweh · Hebrew
JohnYahweh is gracious · Hebrew
Michaelwho is like God? · Hebrew
Levijoined, attached · Hebrew

Benjamin questions

What does the name Benjamin mean?

Benjamin means "son of the right hand". It comes from Hebrew. Biblical name borne by Jacob's youngest son in Genesis. Also interpreted traditionally as 'son of the south' in Hebrew context.

Is Benjamin a boy or girl name?

Benjamin is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Benjamin?

9,820 US babies were named Benjamin in 2024. Its peak year was 1981.

How do you pronounce Benjamin?

Benjamin is usually pronounced BEN-juh-min.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.