Gershon
Masculine
Gershon is a name from the book of Exodus, the eldest son of Levi, and it has stayed in continuous Jewish use ever since — one of a small group of names that never needed reviving because they were never dropped.
How old is the name Gershon?
Gershon first appears in US birth records in 1915 — 110 years ago. The typical Gershon alive today was born around 2006, making them about 19 years old. About 900 people named Gershon are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Gershon most popular?
Gershon peaked in 1933, reaching #2738 nationally. Today it ranks #3128, 390 places below that high. See the whole 1933 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
Origin, sound and short forms
The story of Gershon
Gershon heads one of the three Levite families charged with the care of the tabernacle, and his descendants are named repeatedly in Numbers. The name remained in use in Ashkenazi communities through the medieval period and into the modern one, often paired with a Yiddish everyday name. It came to America with central and eastern European Jewish emigration and is still given, chiefly within observant families.
Meaningnot established
Not established
The meaning is not established. The similar biblical name Gershom is explained in the text itself as a stranger there, but that explanation belongs to Gershom and is not securely transferable to Gershon, whose form the Hebrew Bible keeps separate.
Pronouncing Gershon
GUR-shun
Two syllables in American English. Hebrew places the stress on the second, ger-SHON.
Nicknames for Gershon
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1915
- Most boys named
- 202438 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2738reached in 1933
- Change vs 2024
- 0.0%38 in 2025, from 38
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Gershon in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Gereshon in Hebrew — transliteration
- Gershn in Yiddish — same name
- Gershom in English — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: New Jersey, New York.
Gershons among us
people named Gershon are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 44,949 born in 2025 was named Gershon
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Olvin test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Gershon's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Olvin climbed just as high around 1917, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Olvin's path sketches the road Gershon is walking now.
Gershon sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Gershon is headed
Gershon looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 21% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Gershon beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Gershon in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- An unbroken record of use from the Hebrew Bible to the present, without a revival in between.
- Gersh is a strong, unusual short form that stands well on its own.
- It is clearly distinct from every other name in an American classroom.
- The meaning is genuinely unknown, and the Gershom explanation that people will offer belongs to a different name.
- Gershon and Gershom will be confused by almost everyone outside the tradition.
- It is strongly marked, which is the intention in many families and a consideration in others.
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What they receive
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Gershon
Masculine · #3128 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Gershons are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 900 people named Gershon are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Gershon in 2025?
- Gershon ranks #3128 among US boy names in 2025, with 38 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Gershon?
- About 1 in every 44,949 US boys born in 2025 was named Gershon — 38 in all.
- Will my child share the name Gershon with classmates?
- Gershon will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Gershon
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Hamilton#3128 · Juanpablo#3128 · Courtney#3128 · Baxter#3128 · Javen#3128 · Hal#3128 · Dawud#3128 · Tavion#3128
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Gershon? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Gershon and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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