Jesus first name popularity, history and meaning

Find out how popular the first name Jesus has been for the last 50 years (from 1974 to 2023) and learn more about the meaning and history.

Meaning of Jesus

A masculine name derived from Hebrew meaning "Yahweh is salvation."

Popularity of Jesus by gender

Based on the last 50 years of data, Jesus is more commonly used as a male name, with approximately 99% of people named Jesus being male.

For the most recent data in 2023, there were 2,102 male babies and 6 female babies born with the name Jesus.

Yes—according to the SSA data, 6 baby girls were named Jesus in 2023, despite it being a predominantly male name. We'd love to know why!

Year Male Count Female Count
2023 2,102 6
2022 2,247 0
2021 2,262 6
2020 2,292 0
2019 2,540 5
2018 2,640 5
2017 2,746 6
2016 3,077 8
2015 3,179 10
2014 3,521 11
2013 3,670 15
2012 3,783 12
2011 4,167 8
2010 4,453 13
2009 5,386 10
2008 5,758 24
2007 6,221 18
2006 6,458 21
2005 6,378 26
2004 6,471 36
2003 6,162 41
2002 6,370 40
2001 6,425 34
2000 5,681 30
1999 5,571 43
1998 5,217 53
1997 5,164 30
1996 5,114 35
1995 4,908 52
1994 4,916 54
1993 4,682 63
1992 4,821 62
1991 4,599 54
1990 4,131 59
1989 3,290 53
1988 2,927 49
1987 2,789 35
1986 2,599 38
1985 2,684 46
1984 2,514 38
1983 2,509 43
1982 2,624 56
1981 2,759 44
1980 2,699 40
1979 2,364 37
1978 2,074 41
1977 2,044 37
1976 2,041 46
1975 1,924 49
1974 1,945 28

The history of the first name Jesus

The given name Jesus originated from the ancient Hebrew name Yeshua, which means "Yahweh is salvation" or "Yahweh saves". It is derived from the Hebrew root words "yesha" meaning "to deliver" or "to rescue", and the prefix "ya" referring to God's name Yahweh. The Greek translation of Yeshua became Iēsous, which later evolved into the Latin form Iesus, and finally the English Jesus.

The name gained immense significance in the Christian faith as it was the name given to Jesus Christ, the central figure of Christianity. The name appears numerous times in the New Testament of the Bible, particularly in the Gospels that recount the life and teachings of Jesus.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name Jesus can be found in the writings of the Jewish historian Josephus, who lived in the first century AD. He mentions Jesus and his crucifixion by Roman authorities.

Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the first name Jesus. One of the earliest was Jesus ben Sirach, a Jewish scholar and author of the Book of Sirach, also known as Ecclesiasticus, written around 180 BC. Another early figure was Jesus ben Ananias, a Jewish prophet who lived in the first century AD and is mentioned in the writings of Josephus.

During the Middle Ages, one of the most prominent individuals with the name Jesus was Jesus the Nazarene, a Jewish preacher and alleged false messiah who lived in the fourth century AD.

In more recent times, some notable figures with the first name Jesus include Jesus Garcia, a Mexican-American labor leader and civil rights activist (1915-1977), and Jesus Blasco, a Spanish painter and sculptor (1919-1995).

Another significant figure was Jesus Colón, a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball player who played for several teams, including the Atlanta Braves and Kansas City Royals, between 1964 and 1976.

Data source

The first name data used on this page comes from the Social Security Administration (SSA). They've been collecting data on baby names since 1880.

The history and meaning of the name Jesus was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Jesus, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Jesus first name popularity, history and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 31, 2024. http://namecensus.com/first-names/jesus-meaning-and-history/.

"Jesus first name popularity, history and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/first-names/jesus-meaning-and-history/. Accessed 31 October, 2024

Jesus first name popularity, history and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/first-names/jesus-meaning-and-history/.

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.