Gethsemani
A feminine name of Biblical origin meaning "oil press".
Name Census estimates that about 28 living Americans carry the first name Gethsemani. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Gethsemani today is around 13 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gethsemani births was 2003 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gethsemani. 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 Gethsemani. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
28
~ 1 in 12,241,226 Americans
Peak year
2003
8 babies that year
Average age
13
years old
2020 SSA rank
#15,915
Tracked since 2003
Popularity
Gethsemani: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gethsemani from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 15 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Gethsemani remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gethsemani 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 Gethsemani 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 Gethsemani
The name Gethsemani is a variant spelling of the biblical place name Gethsemane, which refers to a garden at the foot of the Mount of Olives in Jerusalem. The name is derived from the Aramaic words "gat shemane," meaning "oil press." It is believed that olive oil was produced in this area during ancient times.
The Garden of Gethsemane is mentioned in the New Testament as the location where Jesus spent his last night before his crucifixion. According to the Gospels, Jesus went there to pray with his disciples after the Last Supper, and it was in Gethsemane that he was betrayed by Judas and arrested.
The earliest recorded use of the name Gethsemani is likely in reference to religious institutions or places named after the biblical garden. One of the most notable examples is the Abbey of Gethsemani, a Trappist monastery founded in 1848 in Kentucky, United States. The abbey gained fame through the writings of Thomas Merton, a Trappist monk and author who lived there from 1941 until his death in 1968.
While the name Gethsemani is relatively uncommon as a given name, there have been a few notable individuals throughout history who have borne it. One example is Gethsemani Heredia (1870-1923), a Mexican Roman Catholic nun who founded the Congregation of the Servants of the Holy Spirit and Virgin of Loreto.
Another notable bearer of the name is Gethsemani Nez Perce (1899-1961), a Native American artist and educator from the Nez Perce tribe. She played a significant role in preserving and promoting Nez Perce culture through her artwork and teaching.
In the 20th century, Gethsemani Menezes (1918-2002) was an Indian Roman Catholic nun and founder of the Congregation of the Daughters of the Heart of Mary. She dedicated her life to the education and empowerment of women in India.
Additionally, Gethsemani Muñoz (born 1972) is a Mexican singer and songwriter known for her work in the Latin pop genre. She has released several successful albums and has collaborated with various artists throughout her career.
Gethsemani Seravezza (1961-2008) was an Italian painter and sculptor known for her abstract and figurative works. Her art often explored themes of spirituality and the human condition.
People
Gethsemani + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gethsemani as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gethsemani: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gethsemani?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 28 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gethsemani 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 12,241,226 US residents.
Is Gethsemani a common name?
We classify Gethsemani as "Very Rare". It ranks above 45.4% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 28 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gethsemani most popular?
The single biggest year for Gethsemani was 2003, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gethsemani is about 13 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 Gethsemani in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Gethsemani a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Gethsemani 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 Gethsemani still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Gethsemani 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 Gethsemani 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 the name Gethsemani?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Gethsemani at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.