Malachi
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "my messenger" or "messenger of God".
Name Census estimates that about 61,888 living Americans carry the first name Malachi. It sits at #149 in the overall ranking, outside the top 50 but still well-represented. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Malachi today is around 15 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Malachi births was 2006 (2,790 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Malachi. 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
- • Although Malachi is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 281 girls registered with the name since 1880.
- • Malachi is a relatively new arrival in the SSA data. The average bearer is just 15 years old, meaning it gained most of its traction in the last two decades.
People living today
62K
~ 1 in 5,538 Americans
Peak year
2006
2,790 babies that year
Average age
15
years old
2024 SSA rank
#149
Tracked since 1880
Gender
Gender distribution for Malachi
Out of the 63,291 babies given the name Malachi since 1880, 99.6% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Malachi as a male name
- Ranked #149 in 2024
- 2,404 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2006 (2,776 births)
Malachi as a female name
- Ranked #14,551 in 2024
- 6 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2005 (18 births)
Popularity
Malachi: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Malachi from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 24,665 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Malachi remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Malachi 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 Malachi during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Malachis live
The SSA's state-level files cover 51 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Malachi, while Vermont, Wyoming, Rhode Island recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,187 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Malachi
The name Malachi has its roots in the Hebrew language and culture, originating from the biblical period. It is derived from the Hebrew words "mal'akh" meaning "messenger" and "Yah" referring to God. The name Malachi can be translated as "messenger of God" or "my messenger."
Malachi is the last book of the Neviim (Prophets) section in the Hebrew Bible. It is believed to have been written during the 5th century BCE, around the time of the Persian period. The book is attributed to the prophet Malachi, whose name means "my messenger," and it contains prophecies and teachings about the importance of following God's commandments.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Malachi can be found in the Book of Malachi itself, where the prophet is referred to by his name. This biblical figure is believed to have lived and prophesied in Jerusalem during the Persian period, around 430 BCE.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Malachi. One of the earliest was Malachi ben Jacob, a Jewish scholar and philosopher who lived in the 11th century CE in Cordoba, Spain. Another was Malachi Browne, an Irish-born priest and writer who lived from 1597 to 1648 and served as a Catholic missionary in Persia.
In the 17th century, Malachi Thruston was an English Puritan minister and author who wrote several religious works. He lived from 1636 to 1714. Malachi Malagrowther was the pseudonym used by Sir Walter Scott, the renowned Scottish novelist and poet, when writing a series of letters criticizing the government's policies in the early 19th century.
More recently, Malachi Martin was an Irish Catholic priest and writer who gained recognition for his works on the Catholic Church and his involvement in various controversies. He lived from 1921 to 1999.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who have borne the name Malachi, a name with deep roots in Hebrew culture and biblical tradition, symbolizing the role of a messenger or prophet of God.
People
Malachi + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Malachi as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with M
Other first names starting with M with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Malachi: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Malachi?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 61,888 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Malachi 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 5,538 US residents.
Is Malachi a common name?
We classify Malachi as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 63,291 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Malachi most popular?
The single biggest year for Malachi was 2006, when 2,790 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Malachi is about 15 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Malachi a male name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Malachi 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.