Nehemiah first name popularity, history and meaning

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

Meaning of Nehemiah

A masculine Hebrew name meaning "comforted by God" or "God comforts".

Popularity of Nehemiah by gender

Based on the last 50 years of data, Nehemiah is more commonly used as a male name, with approximately 97% of people named Nehemiah being male.

For the most recent data in 2023, there were 716 male babies and 20 female babies born with the name Nehemiah.

Yes—according to the SSA data, 20 baby girls were named Nehemiah in 2023, despite it being a predominantly male name. We'd love to know why!

Year Male Count Female Count
2023 716 20
2022 687 34
2021 761 28
2020 816 22
2019 861 19
2018 802 24
2017 892 28
2016 928 24
2015 908 20
2014 888 33
2013 931 29
2012 906 27
2011 867 25
2010 931 36
2009 853 20
2008 871 23
2007 876 15
2006 825 25
2005 545 22
2004 385 21
2003 355 27
2002 288 15
2001 263 21
2000 254 13
1999 174 7
1998 179 8
1997 126 6
1996 122 0
1995 113 0
1994 90 0
1993 79 0
1992 94 0
1991 88 0
1990 71 0
1989 65 0
1988 57 0
1987 76 0
1986 73 0
1985 75 0
1984 74 0
1983 74 0
1982 81 0
1981 71 0
1980 59 0
1979 62 0
1978 20 0
1977 25 0
1976 27 0
1975 25 0
1974 22 0

The history of the first name Nehemiah

The name Nehemiah has its origins in ancient Hebrew and means "comforted by God" or "Yahweh comforts". It is a biblical name that first appeared in the Old Testament of the Bible, being the name of one of the most important figures in the Hebrew Bible.

Nehemiah was a Jewish leader who lived in the 5th century BCE and played a crucial role in rebuilding the walls of Jerusalem after the Babylonian captivity. His story is recounted in the Book of Nehemiah, one of the historical books of the Hebrew Bible. Nehemiah's unwavering faith and leadership inspired many and his name has been a popular choice among Jews and Christians for centuries.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Nehemiah is found in the Dead Sea Scrolls, a collection of ancient Jewish religious manuscripts dating back to the 3rd century BCE. This suggests that the name was in use among Jewish communities during that time period.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Nehemiah. One of the earliest was Nehemiah ben Hushiel (c. 1030-1100 CE), a Jewish scholar and grammarian who lived in Catalonia, Spain, and made significant contributions to the study of Hebrew grammar.

Another prominent figure was Nehemiah Hiyya ben Moses (c. 1650-1730 CE), a Jewish kabbalist and author from Hebron, Palestine, who wrote extensively on Jewish mysticism and the Kabbalah.

In more recent times, Nehemiah Grew (1641-1712) was an English plant anatomist and philosopher who made important contributions to the study of plant anatomy and physiology.

Nehemiah Adams (1806-1878) was an American clergyman and writer who served as a pastor in various churches in Boston and published numerous books on religious topics.

Nehemiah Persoff (1919-2022) was an American character actor who appeared in numerous films and television shows, including some of the most iconic movies of the 20th century, such as "Some Like It Hot", "Anatomy of a Murder", and "Yentl".

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 Nehemiah was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Nehemiah, 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!

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

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

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

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