Zeke
Masculine · “God strengthens”
Zeke is the short, one-syllable end of Ezekiel — the name of a Hebrew prophet who wrote from exile in Babylon in the sixth century BCE, and a favorite of the Puritans who carried Old Testament names to New England. It has been clipped the same way for generations: three letters, one beat, no explaining required. The z at the front and the long ee give it a snap that few biblical names have.
How old is the name Zeke?
Zeke was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Zeke is a kid of about 10 — this name's wave is very recent. About 7,900 people named Zeke are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Zeke most popular?
Zeke peaked in 2022, reaching #610 nationally. Today it ranks #800, 190 places below that high. See the whole 2022 chart.
Zeke appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From Yehezqel to Zeke
The story of Zeke
The name behind Zeke is Yehezqel, the prophet whose visions — the valley of dry bones, the wheels of fire — fill one of the longest books of the Hebrew Bible. Greek translators rendered it Ezekiēl, and Latin passed it to English as Ezekiel, where it stayed rare until the Reformation sent English and colonial American families back to the Old Testament for names. Ezekiel became genuinely common in the American colonies and the early republic, and wherever a long name is common, a short one follows: Zeke is the American clipping, in speech long before it was written on any document. It has only fairly recently begun to be registered as a name in its own right rather than a household shortening.
Meaning
God strengthens
From the Hebrew Yehezqel, built on the elements for 'strengthen' and the name of God. Zeke inherits that meaning through Ezekiel.
How the name formed
- Yehezqel
- Ezekiēl
- Ezekiel
- Zeke
Related forms: Ezequiel · Ezequiel · Ezechiele · Ézéchiel · Yehezkel · Ezechiel
Pronouncing Zeke
ZEEK
One syllable, rhyming with 'peak'. Almost no one hesitates over it, and almost no one spells it wrong after hearing it once.
Nicknames for Zeke
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
- 2023429 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #610reached in 2022
- Change vs 2023
- −27.5%311 in 2025, from 429
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.
Zeke in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Ezequiel in Spanish — related form
- Ezequiel in Portuguese — related form
- Ezechiele in Italian — related form
- Ézéchiel in French — related form
- Yehezkel in Hebrew — transliteration
- Ezechiel in Polish — related form
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, Texas, Florida.
Zekes among us
people named Zeke are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 5,492 born in 2025 was named Zeke
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 Gerold test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Zeke's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Gerold climbed just as high around 1939, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Gerold's path sketches the road Zeke is walking now.
Zeke 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 Zeke is headed
Zeke 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.
Zeke beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Zeke in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- One syllable and four letters: it survives roll call, coffee cups and phone calls without being repeated or respelled.
- Sits under Ezekiel, so a family can register the long form and use Zeke daily — or do the reverse — with no awkwardness either way.
- Its parent name has an unbroken record from the Hebrew Bible through Puritan England to colonial America.
- Travels easily in Spanish- and Portuguese-speaking families, where Ezequiel is long established — useful in the states where Zeke is strongest.
- For much of the twentieth century, Zeke was a stock name for rustic and comic characters in American film, cartoons and comic strips. That association has faded a great deal, but some older listeners still hear it.
- It began life as a nickname, and a boy given Zeke outright has no longer form to fall back on later unless you record Ezekiel on the certificate.
- A single short syllable pairs oddly with some short surnames — worth saying the full name aloud a few times before deciding.
- Most classmates will not have met another one, which means a moment of novelty at every introduction rather than instant recognition.
Nobody names a baby alone.
Put Zeke to the vote.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Zeke
Masculine · #800 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Zekes are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 7,900 people named Zeke are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Zeke in 2025?
- Zeke ranks #800 among US boy names in 2025, with 311 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Zeke?
- About 1 in every 5,492 US boys born in 2025 was named Zeke — 311 in all.
- Will my child share the name Zeke with classmates?
- Zeke will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Zeke
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Kaisen#800 · Raylan#800 · Keith#800 · Calum#799 · Crue#797 · Thaddeus#797 · Everest#796 · Brewer#804
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Zeke? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Zeke and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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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
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