Yonasan
A masculine name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift of God".
Name Census estimates that about 5 living Americans carry the first name Yonasan. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yonasan today is around 7 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yonasan births was 2019 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yonasan. 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 Yonasan. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
5
~ 1 in 68,550,868 Americans
Peak year
2019
5 babies that year
Average age
7
years old
2019 SSA rank
#14,058
Tracked since 2019
Popularity
Yonasan: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Yonasan 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 Yonasan during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2010s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Yonasan
The name Yonasan has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture, dating back to ancient times. It is a variant spelling of the biblical name Yonatan, derived from the Hebrew words "Yahweh" (meaning "the Lord") and "natan" (meaning "he gave"). Essentially, the name translates to "God has given" or "the gift of God."
In the Old Testament, Yonatan was the name of the son of King Saul and a close friend of David. Their friendship is celebrated in the biblical text, particularly in the Books of Samuel. Yonatan's loyalty and support for David, even in the face of his father's opposition, have made him an enduring symbol of faithful friendship throughout history.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Yonasan was Yonasan ben Uziel, a renowned scholar and translator who lived in the 1st century BCE. He is credited with producing the first Aramaic translation (known as the Targum) of the Hebrew Bible, making the scriptures more accessible to the common people.
Another notable figure was Yonasan HaCohen, a 12th-century Jewish scholar and philosopher from Spain. He is best known for his work "Sefer HaMusar" (Book of Ethics), which explored moral and ethical principles based on Jewish teachings.
In the 16th century, Yonasan Eybeschutz was a prominent rabbi, Talmudic scholar, and kabbalist from Poland. He authored several influential works on Jewish law and mysticism, including "Urim VeTumim" and "Luhot HaEdut."
Fast-forwarding to the modern era, Yonasan Shapira was an Israeli military officer and politician who played a crucial role in the establishment of the State of Israel. He served as the Chief of Staff of the Haganah, the Jewish paramilitary organization that became the Israel Defense Forces, during the 1948 Arab-Israeli War.
Another notable individual was Yonasan Netanyahu, an American-Israeli writer and scholar. He was the younger brother of Benjamin Netanyahu, the former Prime Minister of Israel, and a renowned expert on modern Jewish history and the Jewish diaspora.
These are just a few examples of prominent individuals throughout history who have borne the name Yonasan, each leaving their mark in diverse fields such as religion, scholarship, literature, and military affairs.
People
Yonasan + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yonasan as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yonasan: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yonasan?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 5 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yonasan 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 68,550,868 US residents.
Is Yonasan a common name?
We classify Yonasan as "Very Rare". It ranks above 18.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yonasan most popular?
The single biggest year for Yonasan was 2019, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yonasan is about 7 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 Yonasan in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yonasan a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yonasan 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 Yonasan still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yonasan 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 Yonasan 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 common is the name Yonasan?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Yonasan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.