Elihu
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "He is my God".
Name Census estimates that about 715 living Americans carry the first name Elihu. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Elihu today is around 32 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Elihu births was 1928 (26 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Elihu. 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.
People living today
715
~ 1 in 479,377 Americans
Peak year
1928
26 babies that year
Average age
32
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,491
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Elihu: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Elihu from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 178 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Elihu remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Elihu 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 Elihu during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Elihus live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. New York, California, Texas recorded the most babies named Elihu, while Kentucky, Texas, California recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 34 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Elihu
The name Elihu has its origins in the Hebrew language. It is believed to be derived from the Hebrew words "El" meaning "God" and "hu" meaning "He is". Thus, the name can be interpreted to mean "He is God" or "My God is He".
The earliest recorded instance of the name Elihu appears in the Book of Job, one of the oldest books in the Hebrew Bible. In the biblical narrative, Elihu is introduced as a young man who rebukes Job and his three friends for their misguided attempts to understand the cause of Job's suffering.
One of the earliest known historical figures to bear the name Elihu was Elihu Yale, an English merchant and philanthropist born in 1649. He made a significant donation to the Collegiate School in Connecticut, which was later renamed Yale University in his honor.
Another notable individual named Elihu was Elihu Root, an American lawyer and statesman born in 1845. He served as the Secretary of War under President Theodore Roosevelt and was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize in 1912 for his efforts in promoting international arbitration.
In the 18th century, Elihu Stout was a prominent American preacher and author from New Jersey. He was born in 1744 and was known for his fervent sermons and writings on religious topics.
Elihu Burritt, born in 1810, was an American philanthropist and advocate for world peace. He was widely known as the "Learned Blacksmith" for his ability to master various languages while working as a blacksmith.
Elihu Vedder, born in 1836, was a renowned American painter and illustrator. He is particularly renowned for his symbolic and allegorical works, including his famous painting "The Lair of the Sea Serpent".
People
Elihu + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Elihu as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Elihu: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Elihu?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 715 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Elihu 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 479,377 US residents.
Is Elihu a common name?
We classify Elihu as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,222 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Elihu most popular?
The single biggest year for Elihu was 1928, when 26 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Elihu is about 32 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Elihu a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Elihu in the SSA data are male. 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.
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.