Phineas
Masculine · “the Nubian”
Phineas may be Egyptian rather than Hebrew — the Nubian, or the dark-skinned one — which would make it a foreign name inside the Hebrew Bible, recorded as such.
How old is the name Phineas?
Phineas was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Phineas is a kid of about 12 — this name's wave is very recent. About 2,600 people named Phineas are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Phineas most popular?
Phineas peaked in 1880, reaching #909 nationally. Today it ranks #1609, 700 places below that high. See the whole 1880 chart.
Phineas appears on this list:
Where it comes from
From pa-nehasi to Phineas
The story of Phineas
Phinehas is a grandson of Aaron and a priest, and his name is one of several in Exodus and Numbers that look Egyptian rather than Hebrew — which some scholars read as evidence for the narrative's setting. Puritan families took the name up, and it became a nineteenth-century American staple. It has returned to current use.
Meaningscholars disagree
the Nubian, dark-skinned
The likeliest reading takes the Hebrew Pinchas from the Egyptian pa-nehasi, 'the Nubian' or 'the southerner' — a real Egyptian name. A Hebrew folk reading gives 'mouth of brass'. The Egyptian derivation is well supported and fits the Exodus setting, but is not universally accepted.
How the name formed
- pa-nehasi
- Pinchas
- Phineas
Related forms: Pinchas · Phinehas · Pinny
Pronouncing Phineas
FIN-ee-us
Three syllables, stress on the first. Hebrew Pinchas has two with a throat sound in the middle.
Nicknames for Phineas
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
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 2016142 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #909reached in 1880
- Change vs 2024
- −7.9%105 in 2025, from 114
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.
Phineas in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Pinchas in Hebrew — related form
- Phinehas in English — spelling variant
- Pinny in Yiddish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, New York.
Phineass among us
people named Phineas are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 16,267 born in 2025 was named Phineas
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Spellings of Phineas
- #1609
- Phineas on the 2025 chart
- #696
- counting every spelling
The SSA counts spellings, not names. Phineas went to 105 boys in 2025, but Finneas and Phinneas are the same name said out loud. Together the 3 spellings went to 236, which makes it the 696th most-given boys’ name of the year — 913 places above the chart.
- Finneas126
- Phineas105
- Phinneas5
About 1 boy in 7,238 born in 2025 was given one of these spellings — against 1 in 16,267 for Phineas itself.
Spellings are grouped by a fixed rule that folds interchangeable English spellings of one sound (ck/k, ph/f, x/ks, a non-initial y for i) and keeps vowels apart, so Sean and Shawn stay separate names. It errs towards splitting: a family here is never larger than the truth. SSA national data, 2025. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Phineas 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 Phineas is headed
Phineas should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind.
High 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.
Phineas beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Phineas in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- The Egyptian derivation is a genuinely interesting piece of biblical scholarship.
- Finn is available as a short form that is fully current.
- Three syllables with a front stress, which holds up against a short surname.
- The Egyptian reading is well supported but not universally accepted.
- An animated series carries the name for a generation of children.
- The ph will need dictating.
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Phineas
Masculine · #1609 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Phineass are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 2,600 people named Phineas are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How do you spell Phineas?
- Phineas is one of 3 recorded spellings. Finneas is the more common one — 126 births in 2025 against 105 for Phineas.
- How popular is the name Phineas in 2025?
- Phineas ranks #1609 among US boy names in 2025, with 105 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Phineas?
- About 1 in every 16,267 US boys born in 2025 was named Phineas — 105 in all.
- Will my child share the name Phineas with classmates?
- Phineas will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Phineas
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Keagan#1609 · Valen#1609 · Steve#1609 · Cristobal#1609 · Zade#1609 · Cru#1609 · Karam#1609 · Destin#1609
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Phineas? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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