Nazareth
Feminine · “branch”
Nazareth is given to both — 1,204 girls and 1,198 boys since 1880. See Nazareth as a boy nameSee other names given to both
Nazareth may be named for netzer — a shoot or a branch — which would explain a line in Matthew nobody can source.
How old is the name Nazareth?
Nazareth first appears in US birth records in 1987 — 38 years ago. The typical Nazareth is a kid of about 8 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,200 people named Nazareth are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Nazareth most popular?
Nazareth peaked in 2023, reaching #1865 nationally. Today it ranks #2514, 649 places below that high. See the whole 2023 chart.
Where it comes from
From netzer to Nazareth
The story of Nazareth
Matthew ends the infancy narrative saying the move to Nazareth fulfilled a prophecy that he should be called a Nazarene — and no such prophecy exists in the Hebrew Bible. The commonest explanation is a pun on netzer, the shoot from Jesse's stump in Isaiah. Nazareth appears in American records as a given name in current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
branch, shoot
The town's name is generally connected to the Hebrew netzer, 'branch' or 'shoot', or to notzer, 'watchtower'. Matthew says 'he shall be called a Nazarene', quoting a prophecy found nowhere in the Hebrew Bible — the netzer of Isaiah 11 is the usual explanation. Neither derivation is settled.
How the name formed
- netzer
- Nazareth
Related forms: נצרת · Nazaret · الناصرة
Pronouncing Nazareth
NAZ-uh-reth
Three syllables, stress on the first. Spanish Nazaret stresses the last.
Nicknames for Nazareth
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
- 1987
- Most girls named
- 2023107 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1865reached in 2023
- Change vs 2024
- −27.8%70 in 2025, from 97
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.
Nazareth in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- נצרת in Hebrew — transliteration
- Nazaret in Spanish — spelling variant
- الناصرة in Arabic — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: Texas, California, Florida.
Nazareths among us
people named Nazareth are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 22,961 born in 2025 was named Nazareth
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 Tinika test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Nazareth's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Tinika climbed just as high around 1976, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Tinika's path sketches the road Nazareth is walking now.
Nazareth 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 Nazareth is headed
Nazareth looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 26% 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.
Nazareth beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Nazareth in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That Matthew quotes a prophecy nobody can find is a first-rate puzzle.
- The branch reading connects it to Isaiah's shoot from Jesse.
- Three syllables with a front stress, which holds up against a short surname.
- It is a place name and reads as one.
- The etymology is genuinely unsettled.
- It carries strong Christian associations.
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What they receive
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Nazareth
Feminine · #2514 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Nazareths are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,200 people named Nazareth are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Nazareth in 2025?
- Nazareth ranks #2514 among US girl names in 2025, with 70 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Nazareth?
- About 1 in every 22,961 US girls born in 2025 was named Nazareth — 70 in all.
- Will my child share the name Nazareth with classmates?
- Nazareth will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Nazareth
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Syeda#2514 · Maysen#2514 · Imogene#2514 · Orla#2514 · Annalisa#2514 · Gracyn#2514 · Susannah#2514 · Winnifred#2514
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Nazareth? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Nazareth and another name?
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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