Moishe
Masculine · “drawn out of water”
Moishe is the Yiddish form of Moses, and the name's own origin is argued in the Hebrew Bible itself — the text offers one explanation and Egyptologists offer another.
How old is the name Moishe?
Moishe first appears in US birth records in 1950 — 75 years ago. The typical Moishe alive today was born around 2002, making them about 23 years old. About 1,100 people named Moishe are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Moishe most popular?
Moishe peaked in 1975, reaching #1884 nationally. Today it ranks #3848, 1,964 places below that high. See the whole 1975 chart.
Where it comes from
From Mosheh to Moishe
The story of Moishe
The biblical explanation is a wordplay and works only in Hebrew, which is a difficulty since the name is given by an Egyptian princess; the Egyptian reading solves that and loses the story. Yiddish gives Moishe, which has been the everyday form in Ashkenazi communities for centuries and remains so. It appears in American records chiefly in observant Jewish families.
Meaningscholars disagree
drawn out of water, or born of
Exodus explains the name as drawn out, from a Hebrew verb, because the daughter of Pharaoh drew him from the river. Egyptologists read it instead as the Egyptian element mose, born of, which closes Thutmose and Ramesses. Both are seriously held.
How the name formed
- Mosheh
- Moshe
- Moishe
Related forms: Moshe · Moses · Musa · Moisés
Pronouncing Moishe
MOY-sheh
Two syllables, first stressed. Hebrew Moshe is mo-SHEH, which is a real difference.
Nicknames for Moishe
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
- 1950
- Most boys named
- 201433 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1884reached in 1975
- Change vs 2024
- −12.5%28 in 2025, from 32
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.
Moishe in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Moshe in Hebrew — same name
- Moses in English — same name
- Musa in Arabic — same name
- Moisés in Spanish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: New York.
Moishes among us
people named Moishe are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 61,003 born in 2025 was named Moishe
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 Glendale test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Moishe's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Glendale climbed just as high around 1946, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Glendale's path sketches the road Moishe is walking now.
Moishe 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 Moishe is headed
Moishe 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.
Moishe beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Moishe in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- It carries one of the most consequential names in human history.
- Mo is a plain short form that works everywhere.
- Immediately recognizable in the community that uses it.
- The meaning is genuinely argued between a Hebrew and an Egyptian reading.
- Moishe and Moshe are both used and mark different communities.
- It is clearly marked as a Jewish name, which is the intention in the families that use it.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Moishe to the vote.
Add it to a family vote or a couple’s swipe deck — the other person gets one card, a simple answer and room to say why. No app, no account for them.
Only the people you invite can see your list.
Already decided on Moishe? Hide it among decoys and let them guess.
What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Moishe
Masculine · #3848 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Moishes are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,100 people named Moishe are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Moishe in 2025?
- Moishe ranks #3848 among US boy names in 2025, with 28 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Moishe?
- About 1 in every 61,003 US boys born in 2025 was named Moishe — 28 in all.
- Will my child share the name Moishe with classmates?
- Moishe will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Moishe
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Armand#3848 · Tracy#3848 · Stafford#3848 · Dewey#3848 · Donny#3848 · Trevion#3848 · Coltyn#3848 · Isreal#3848
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Moishe? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Moishe and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
Compare side by sideIn a hurry? Just pick a winner — one tap, no sign-up, and you see how everyone else voted.
Weighing a whole shortlist? Add the rest in the builder, or settle it with a bracket.
Cast your vote
Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
No advertising trackers and no data sellinghow we handle your dataindependent and founder-run, about Name Battle