Zebulun
Masculine · “dwelling”
Zebulun is one of Jacob's sons, and Genesis gives Leah two explanations for the name in the same sentence — a gift and a dwelling.
How old is the name Zebulun?
Zebulun first appears in US birth records in 1973 — 52 years ago. The typical Zebulun alive today was born around 1999, making them about 26 years old. About 900 people named Zebulun are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Zebulun most popular?
Zebulun peaked in 1979, reaching #1833 nationally. Today it ranks #4396, 2,563 places below that high. See the whole 1979 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Zevulun to Zebulun
The story of Zebulun
The naming speech in Genesis is doubled: God has endowed me with a good dowry, and now my husband will dwell with me. Two different verbs, one name — the text is doing wordplay rather than etymology, which is its habit. The tribe of Zebulun held territory in lower Galilee, and Jacob's blessing places them by the sea. The name was taken up by English Puritans and appears in American records since.
Meaningscholars disagree
dwelling, honor
Genesis has Leah play on two roots at once: one about a gift or endowment and one about dwelling — this time my husband will dwell with me. Which is the actual derivation is not settled and the text may be playing deliberately.
How the name formed
- Zevulun
- Zebulun
Related forms: Zevulun · Zebulon · Zabulón
Pronouncing Zebulun
ZEB-yoo-lun
Three syllables, first stressed. Hebrew gives zev-oo-LOON.
Nicknames for Zebulun
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
- 1973
- Most boys named
- 197930 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #1833reached in 1979
- Change vs 2024
- −23.3%23 in 2025, from 30
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.
Zebulun in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Zevulun in Hebrew — same name
- Zebulon in English — spelling variant
- Zabulón in Spanish — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: Missouri.
Zebuluns among us
people named Zebulun are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 74,264 born in 2025 was named Zebulun
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 Amando test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Zebulun's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Amando climbed just as high around 1943, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Amando's path sketches the road Zebulun is walking now.
Zebulun 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
Zebulun beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Zebulun in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A documented biblical name with a genuinely interesting doubled explanation.
- Zeb is a complete short form in its own right.
- The initial Z keeps it distinct on any list.
- Zebulon with an o is the more common American spelling.
- Seven letters and three syllables is a fair amount for early handwriting.
- The two explanations in the text pull in different directions.
Nobody names a baby alone.
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What they receive
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Zebulun
Masculine · #4396 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Zebuluns 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 Zebulun are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Zebulun in 2025?
- Zebulun ranks #4396 among US boy names in 2025, with 23 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Zebulun?
- About 1 in every 74,264 US boys born in 2025 was named Zebulun — 23 in all.
- Will my child share the name Zebulun with classmates?
- Zebulun will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Zebulun
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Odell#4396 · Corwin#4396 · Tennyson#4396 · Marques#4396 · Manu#4396 · Omid#4396 · Zackariah#4396 · Burton#4396
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Zebulun? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Zebulun and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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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
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