Ephrim
A masculine name derived from Hebrew meaning "fruitful" or "productive".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Ephrim. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ephrim today is around 49 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ephrim births was 1917 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ephrim. 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 Ephrim. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
1917
5 babies that year
Average age
49
years old
1976 SSA rank
#5,874
Tracked since 1917
Popularity
Ephrim: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ephrim from the 1910s through to the 1970s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 5 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ephrim 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 Ephrim 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 Ephrim
The given name Ephrim has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is derived from the Hebrew word "Ephrayim," which means "doubly fruitful" or "twice fruitful." This name is associated with the biblical figure Ephraim, who was one of the sons of Joseph and the progenitor of one of the twelve tribes of Israel.
In the Old Testament, the Book of Genesis mentions Ephraim as the younger son of Joseph and his Egyptian wife, Asenath. Ephraim and his brother Manasseh were born in Egypt and were later blessed by their grandfather, Jacob, who adopted them as his own sons. This event is recorded in Genesis 48, where Jacob bestowed a special blessing upon Ephraim, declaring that his descendants would become a multitude of nations.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Ephrim can be found in the biblical account of the Exodus from Egypt. During the journey through the wilderness, the Israelites encountered various challenges, and the tribe of Ephraim played a significant role in these events. The name Ephrim also appears in other ancient Hebrew texts, such as the Book of Joshua and the Book of Judges, where it is associated with leaders and warriors from the tribe of Ephraim.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Ephrim. One of the earliest recorded was Ephrem the Syrian (306-373 CE), a deacon, theologian, and hymnographer who is revered as a saint in various Christian traditions. His writings and hymns had a profound influence on the development of Syriac literature and theology.
Another important figure was Ephraim of Antioch (c. 505-546 CE), a Patriarch of Antioch who played a significant role in the Christological controversies of the time. He defended the Chalcedonian definition of Christ's divine and human natures against the Monophysite position.
In the medieval period, Ephraim of Pereyaslavl (1089-1096 CE) was a prominent Russian prince who ruled the principality of Pereyaslavl-Khmelnytskyi. He is remembered for his military campaigns against the Polovtsian nomads and his efforts to defend the southern borders of Kievan Rus'.
During the Renaissance, Ephraim Lessing (1729-1781 CE) was a German writer, philosopher, and critic who made significant contributions to the fields of literature, drama, and aesthetics. His works, such as the play "Nathan the Wise," promoted religious tolerance and enlightenment ideals.
More recently, Ephraim Katzir (1916-2009 CE) was an Israeli biophysicist and the fourth President of Israel, serving from 1973 to 1978. He made important contributions to the field of biophysics and was a prominent figure in the scientific community.
People
Ephrim + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ephrim 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
Ephrim: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ephrim?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ephrim 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Ephrim a common name?
We classify Ephrim as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 10 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ephrim most popular?
The single biggest year for Ephrim was 1917, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ephrim is about 49 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 Ephrim in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ephrim a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ephrim 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.
Is Ephrim still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ephrim 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 Ephrim 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 have Ephrim as a first name?
If you just want to know how many people have the name Ephrim, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.