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Samuel

Samuel: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“name of God”
Origin
Hebrew
Say it
SAM-yoo-əl · 3 syllables
Used for
Boys

Biblical name of the prophet Samuel. The traditional interpretation is 'name of God'; some scholars also connect it with 'heard by God'.

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How popular is Samuel?

20242,499 per million US babies
1880192019602000
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.

Babies named Samuel in 20248,317

2024 rank#17 boys

Peak year1880

Total US babies since 1880814,600

Samuel has been fairly stable over the last fifteen years.

Names like Samuel

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • Samheard by God · Hebrew
  • Shmuelheard by God · Hebrew
  • SammyGod has heard · Hebrew
  • Sammietold by God · English
  • SamualGod has heard · Hebrew
  • Noahrest; comfort · Hebrew
  • Jamessupplanter · Hebrew
  • Elijahmy God is Yahweh · Hebrew

Samuel questions

What does the name Samuel mean?

Samuel means "name of God". It comes from Hebrew. Biblical name of the prophet Samuel. The traditional interpretation is 'name of God'; some scholars also connect it with 'heard by God'.

Is Samuel a boy or girl name?

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

How popular is Samuel?

8,317 US babies were named Samuel in 2024. Its peak year was 1880.

How do you pronounce Samuel?

Samuel is usually pronounced SAM-yoo-əl.

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.