Judah
Feminine · “praised”
Judah is given to boys far more often — 35,578 boys against 853 girls since 1880. See Judah as a boy name
Judah is one of the twelve sons of Jacob and the tribe that gave its name to Judea, to Jews and to Judaism. The text says what it means: praised.
How old is the name Judah?
Judah first appears in US birth records in 1988 — 37 years ago. The typical Judah is a kid of about 10 — this name's wave is very recent. About 800 people named Judah are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Judah most popular?
Judah peaked in 2020, reaching #3091 nationally. Today it ranks #3645, 554 places below that high. See the whole 2020 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Yehudah to Judah
The story of Judah
Judah's tribe held Jerusalem and gave the southern kingdom its name, which became Judea under Rome and gave the word Jew to every European language. The name has been in continuous Jewish use for three thousand years and entered Christian use after the Reformation. Its use for girls in American records is recent and small, and it belongs with Micah, Elliot and Sawyer.
Meaning
praised
From Hebrew Yehudah, built on a root meaning to praise or give thanks; Genesis has Leah name the child with a phrase about praising the Lord. The words Jew and Judaism both descend from it.
How the name formed
- Yehudah
- Judah
Related forms: Yehuda · Judá · Ioudas
Pronouncing Judah
JOO-dah
Two syllables, first stressed. Hebrew gives yeh-hoo-DAH, with three and the stress at the end.
Nicknames for Judah
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
- 1988
- Most girls named
- 202051 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #3091reached in 2020
- Change vs 2024
- +2.5%41 in 2025, from 40
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.
Judah in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Yehuda in Hebrew — same name
- Judá in Spanish — same name
- Ioudas in Greek — transliteration
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Judahs among us
people named Judah are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 39,202 born in 2025 was named Judah
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 Sachi test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Judah's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Sachi climbed just as high around 2001, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Sachi's path sketches the road Judah is walking now.
Judah 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 Judah is headed
Judah should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
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.
Judah beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Judah in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A settled meaning explained in the text itself, which very few names can claim.
- A documented record measured in thousands of years.
- Jude is available immediately as a plain, current short form.
- It is read as a boy's name by default, and she will correct that often.
- The Greek form of the name is Judas, which is a very heavy association.
- The English and Hebrew pronunciations differ entirely.
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What they receive
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Judah
Feminine · #3645 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Judahs are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 800 people named Judah are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Judah in 2025?
- Judah ranks #3645 among US girl names in 2025, with 41 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Judah?
- About 1 in every 39,202 US girls born in 2025 was named Judah — 41 in all.
- Will my child share the name Judah with classmates?
- Judah will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Judah
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Elenor#3645 · Azucena#3645 · Alaura#3645 · Rylen#3645 · Zamiyah#3645 · Naiara#3645 · Bostyn#3645 · Marietta#3645
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Judah? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Judah and another name?
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Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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