Ephriam
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "fruitful" or "productive".
Name Census estimates that about 457 living Americans carry the first name Ephriam. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ephriam today is around 44 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ephriam births was 1917 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ephriam. 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
457
~ 1 in 750,009 Americans
Peak year
1917
22 babies that year
Average age
44
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,167
Tracked since 1880
Popularity
Ephriam: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ephriam 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 130 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ephriam 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 Ephriam during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Ephriams live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ephriam
The name Ephriam has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, tracing back to ancient times. It is a variant spelling of the biblical name Ephraim, which was borne by one of the sons of Joseph in the Old Testament. The name is derived from the Hebrew words 'ephrayim' or 'ephrath,' meaning 'fruitful' or 'doubly fruitful.'
In the Book of Genesis, Ephraim was the younger son of Joseph and Asenath, and the founder of one of the twelve tribes of Israel. The name Ephriam is mentioned several times in the Bible, particularly in the books of Numbers, Joshua, and Judges, reflecting its significance in ancient Israelite history and culture.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Ephriam can be found in the Book of Numbers, where it refers to the tribe of Ephraim. In the Christian tradition, Ephriam was also the name of a 4th-century saint and bishop of Antioch, who was celebrated for his preaching and writings.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Ephriam. One of the most famous was Ephraim Rescriptus (c. 5th century), a Greek biblical manuscript containing portions of the Septuagint version of the Old Testament. Another notable figure was Ephraim Chambers (1680-1740), an English writer and editor best known for his Cyclopaedia, one of the first general encyclopedias in English.
Other individuals with the name Ephriam include Ephraim Mirvis (1888-1962), the former Chief Rabbi of Ireland, Ephraim Kishon (1924-2005), an Israeli satirist and writer, and Ephraim Katzir (1916-2009), an Israeli biophysicist and the fourth President of Israel from 1973 to 1978.
The name Ephriam has also been used in various literary works, such as the novel "The Mill on the Floss" by George Eliot, where it is the name of one of the main characters. Overall, the name Ephriam has a rich historical and cultural significance, rooted in ancient Hebrew tradition and carried through various religious, literary, and historical contexts over the centuries.
People
Ephriam + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ephriam 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
Ephriam: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ephriam?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 457 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ephriam 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 750,009 US residents.
Is Ephriam a common name?
We classify Ephriam as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 966 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ephriam most popular?
The single biggest year for Ephriam was 1917, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ephriam is about 44 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Ephriam a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ephriam 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.