Adoniyah
The Lord is my Master; servant of the Lord.
Name Census estimates that about 18 living Americans carry the first name Adoniyah. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 66.7% of registrations being female. The average person named Adoniyah today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Adoniyah births was 2022 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Adoniyah. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Adoniyah. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
18
~ 1 in 19,041,908 Americans
Peak year
2022
7 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2016 SSA rank
#10,782
Tracked since 2016
Gender
Gender distribution for Adoniyah
Adoniyah is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 18 total registrations, 6 (33.3%) were male and 12 (66.7%) were female.
Adoniyah as a male name
- Ranked #10,782 in 2016
- 6 male births in 2016
- Peak: 2016 (6 births)
Adoniyah as a female name
- Ranked #12,261 in 2022
- 7 female births in 2022
- Peak: 2022 (7 births)
Popularity
Adoniyah: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Adoniyah from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 11 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Adoniyah remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Adoniyah by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Adoniyah during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Adoniyah
The name Adoniyah has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Hebrew words "Adonai," meaning "Lord," and "Yah," a shortened form of the name of the Hebrew God, Yahweh. The name can be translated as "My Lord is Yahweh" or "The Lord is my Lord."
The name Adoniyah is mentioned in the Bible, specifically in the Old Testament. It was the name of one of the sons of King David, who attempted to seize the throne from his brother, Solomon. This event is described in the First Book of Kings in the Bible, where Adoniyah's failed attempt to become king is recounted.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Adoniyah is found in the Bible, referring to King David's son. However, the name has been used throughout history by various individuals, some of whom have gained notable recognition.
One famous bearer of the name Adoniyah was Adoniyah ben Avraham Alami (1165-1238), a Jewish philosopher and poet who lived in Spain during the Golden Age of Jewish culture in that region. He is known for his works on Jewish philosophy and his contributions to the development of Hebrew poetry.
Another notable figure named Adoniyah was Adoniyah Shelomo ben David (1627-1703), a Jewish scholar and rabbi who lived in Italy. He was renowned for his expertise in Jewish law and his extensive writings on various aspects of Judaism.
In the 19th century, Adoniyah Brown (1803-1885) was an American Baptist minister and abolitionist who played a significant role in the anti-slavery movement in the United States. He advocated for the abolition of slavery and worked to establish educational opportunities for formerly enslaved individuals.
Adoniyah Nahmanides (1805-1890) was a prominent Jewish scholar and philosopher who lived in Lithuania. He was known for his profound contributions to the study of Jewish mysticism and his interpretations of the Talmud and other sacred Jewish texts.
Lastly, Adoniyah Sofer (1915-2009) was a renowned Israeli artist and sculptor. He is celebrated for his unique style, which combined elements of abstract and figurative art, and his significant contributions to the development of modern Israeli art.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the name Adoniyah, highlighting the diverse backgrounds and achievements associated with this ancient Hebrew name.
People
Adoniyah + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Adoniyah as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Adoniyah: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Adoniyah?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 18 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Adoniyah going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 19,041,908 US residents.
Is Adoniyah a common name?
We classify Adoniyah as "Very Rare". It ranks above 38.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 18 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Adoniyah most popular?
The single biggest year for Adoniyah was 2022, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Adoniyah is about 7 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Adoniyah in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Adoniyah a female name?
Yes, 66.7% of people registered as Adoniyah in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Adoniyah still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Adoniyah in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Adoniyah can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people are called Adoniyah?
See how many people have the name Adoniyah on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.