Sef
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "divine revelator".
Name Census estimates that about 12 living Americans carry the first name Sef. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Sef today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Sef births was 2004 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Sef. 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 Sef. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
12
~ 1 in 28,562,862 Americans
Peak year
2004
6 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2006 SSA rank
#11,808
Tracked since 2004
Popularity
Sef: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Sef 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 Sef during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2000s | 12 | 0 | 12 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Sef
The name Sef is of Hebrew origin, derived from the Hebrew word "sefer," which means "book" or "scroll." It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period in Jewish communities across Europe and the Middle East.
This name was particularly popular among scholars and scribes who dedicated their lives to the study and preservation of sacred texts. It was seen as a symbol of wisdom, knowledge, and reverence for the written word.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Sef can be found in the Talmud, a central text of Rabbinic Judaism. The Talmud references a figure named Sef ben Eliezer, a renowned scholar and sage who lived in the 2nd century CE.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Sef gained prominence among Jewish intellectuals and rabbinical authorities. One notable bearer of this name was Sef Hakohen, a 12th-century Jewish philosopher and commentator from Cordoba, Spain.
In the 16th century, a prominent rabbi and Kabbalist named Sef Sevi lived in Salonica, Greece. He was known for his teachings on Jewish mysticism and his contributions to the study of the Zohar, a fundamental text of the Kabbalah.
Another influential figure with the name Sef was Sef ben Elijah, a 17th-century Jewish scholar from Poland who authored several works on Jewish law and philosophy.
In more recent times, Sef Gonzales was a 20th-century Filipino writer and poet who gained recognition for his works exploring themes of identity, social justice, and the human condition.
While the name Sef may not be as common today as it once was, it continues to hold significance within Jewish communities, particularly among those with a deep appreciation for religious scholarship and the preservation of sacred texts.
People
Sef + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Sef as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with S
Other first names starting with S with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Sef: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Sef?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 12 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Sef 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 28,562,862 US residents.
Is Sef a common name?
We classify Sef as "Very Rare". It ranks above 32.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 12 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Sef most popular?
The single biggest year for Sef was 2004, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Sef is about 21 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 Sef in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Sef a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Sef 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 Sef still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Sef 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 Sef 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 Sef?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.