Shamor
An Arabic name meaning "vigilant" or "guardian".
Name Census estimates that about 8 living Americans carry the first name Shamor. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Shamor today is around 26 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Shamor births was 2000 (8 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Shamor. 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 Shamor. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
8
~ 1 in 42,844,292 Americans
Peak year
2000
8 babies that year
Average age
26
years old
2000 SSA rank
#8,092
Tracked since 2000
Popularity
Shamor: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Shamor 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 Shamor 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 | 8 | 0 | 8 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Shamor
The name Shamor has its origins in the ancient Semitic languages, tracing back to the Phoenician and Aramaic cultures of the Middle East. It is believed to be derived from the root word "shamar," which means "to keep" or "to guard." The earliest recorded examples of the name date back to the 6th century BCE, found in Phoenician inscriptions and texts.
In the Hebrew Bible, the name Shamor is mentioned in the Book of Judges, referring to a judge who ruled over the Israelites during a period of turmoil. This historical reference suggests that the name was in use among the ancient Israelites and may have held significance as a symbol of protection or guardianship.
One of the earliest known individuals to bear the name Shamor was Shamor ben Hananiah, a Jewish scholar who lived in the 2nd century CE. He is renowned for his contributions to the study of the Mishnah, the foundational text of the Jewish oral tradition.
In the medieval period, Shamor al-Gharnati was a prominent Islamic philosopher and mathematician from Al-Andalus (present-day Spain). Born in the late 12th century, he made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and is credited with developing advanced techniques for calculating celestial movements.
Another noteworthy figure was Shamor Ibn al-Baytar, a renowned botanist and pharmacist who lived in the 13th century. Born in Malaga, Spain, he authored several influential works on the medicinal properties of plants, which were widely studied throughout the Islamic world and Europe.
In more recent history, Shamor Shamlou was a celebrated Iranian poet and writer who lived from 1925 to 2000. His poetic works, which often explored themes of love, loss, and social injustice, earned him widespread acclaim and a prominent place in the canon of Persian literature.
While the name Shamor is not as common today as it once was, it continues to carry a rich historical legacy, reflecting the cultural and linguistic traditions of the ancient Middle East and the various civilizations that have influenced its evolution over time.
People
Shamor + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Shamor 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
Shamor: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Shamor?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 8 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Shamor 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 42,844,292 US residents.
Is Shamor a common name?
We classify Shamor as "Very Rare". It ranks above 24.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 8 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Shamor most popular?
The single biggest year for Shamor was 2000, when 8 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Shamor is about 26 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 Shamor in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Shamor a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Shamor 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 Shamor still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Shamor 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 Shamor 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 are called Shamor?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.