Tag Archives: israel

101 Most Popular Jewish Girls Names in Israel in 2016

[Update: The lists for 2017-2018 and 2019 are now available.]

I’m happy to release my list of the 101 most popular Jewish girls names in Israel for 2016, based on recently released data for that year. This follows up my earlier releases of lists for 2014 and 2015. You can also see the lists for the 101 Most Popular Boys Names in Israel in 2016.

Three girls names broke into the top 101 in 2016 – Arbel (which jumped all the way from 104 to 73), Shoshana (105 to 93), and Chava (107 to 101). The three names that left the list were Lior (90 to 104), Shilat (101 to 105) and Yaara (92 to 106).

All the columns in the table below can be used to sort the table, so you can sort the table to see the order of ranking for each year, or by the spelling of the name in Hebrew or English. You can also search the table using the search field on the top right of the table.

2016
Rank
2015
Rank
2014
Rank
Name
(Hebrew)
Name
(English)
Number
122תָּמָרTamar1322
211נוֹעָהNoa1293
348אֲבִיגַיִלAbigail1182
434מַאיָהMaya1178
595יָעֵלYael1106
666אַדֶלAdele1101
773שִׁירָהShira1047
81010שָׂרָהSarah1034
989איילהAyala1003
1057טַלְיָהTalia989
111611אֶסְתֵּרEsther870
121416לִיָהLia791
131314חַנָּהChana (Hanna)771
141918רִבְקָהRivka (Rebecca)746
151119רוֹנִיRoni740
161217רוֹמִיRomi730
171821הוֹדָיָהHodaya700
182015אֵלָהElah690
191513מִיכַלMichal689
202427חַיָּהChaya682
212220רָחֵלRachel677
221712נוֹיָהNoya655
232326מִרְיָםMiriam645
243335אֵמָהEmma642
252933רוּתRuth593
262124יוּבַלYuval586
272622עַלְמָהAlma579
283937הַלֵּלHallel573
292829אֲרִיאֵלAriel568
303025תָּהֶלTahal554
312523אֲגַםAgam549
322732נָעֳמִיNaomi504
333631לִיאַןLian/Leanne476
343739גַּאיָהGaia452
353540אֶפְרָתEfrat451
363428עֲדִיAdi451
373134נֹגַהּNoga449
383230הִילָּהHila435
395245נֶטַעNeta432
404141לֵאָהLeah414
414252אֶמִילִיEmily412
427795עוֹמֶרOmer408
436247הֲדַסָּהHadassa405
444042תְּהִילָּהTehila405
453836מַעֲיָיןMaayan393
465053טוֹהָרTohar387
475143נוֹעַםNoam380
484355יָהֵלִיYaheli379
496462לִיבִּיLibi378
504450אוריהUria/Oria374
515561מַלְכָּהMalka373
525646מִיקָהMika369
535857הֲדַסHadas360
544551עוֹפְרִיOfri354
554638הָדָרHadar350
564748נַעֲמָהNaama346
575756יְהוּדִיתYehudit (Judith)337
585368אֱלִישֶׁבַעElisheva (Elizabeth)336
594959שָׁקֵדShaked336
604860שִׁירShir331
616054אוֹרִיOri324
625467אֲבִישַׁגAvishag316
635949עָמִיתAmit307
648592שַׁי-לִיShaily299
656671אַלְיָהAliya282
666974דְּבוֹרָהDvora (Deborah)282
676864דָּנִיֵּאלDaniel281
687072גֶּפֶןGefen279
696358אוֹפִירOphir278
706144אוֹרOr277
716563לִיאֵלLiel272
728085שַׁיShai263
73104114אַרְבֵּלArbel262
747275שַׁחַרShachar259
757976אָנָּאֵלAnael243
767466עֵדֶןEden240
776765מוֹרִיָּהMoriah237
787886אֲבִיָּהAvia236
798190אַלְמָהAlma235
808269אָלִיןAleen218
817683מַאיMay217
828473גִּילִיGili210
837379נֶחָמָהNechama209
849877רוֹתֶםRotem203
859782בִּרָכָהBracha202
868884זוֹהַרZohar201
879688אֲבִיטַלAvital196
887178יַרְדֵּןYarden (Jordan)196
8995101כַּרְמֶלCarmel192
907570שָׁנִיShani192
918781אוֹדֶלOdele190
9289106גַּלִּיGali185
93105112שׁוֹשַׁנָּהShoshana181
949494אָבִיבAviv176
958691דָּנִיֵּאלָהDaniella174
969393הִילִיHili174
978389בַּת שֶׁבַעBatsheva171
9810098צִפּוֹרָהTziporah169
9999132יוּלִיYuli (July)166
1009187אוֹרִיןOrin165
10110797חַוָּהChava165
Hebrew-English Family Terms Chart

Hebrew family and genealogy terms

Happy Yom Haazmaut (Israeli Independence Day) from Jerusalem. In honor of the holiday I’m publishing a list (and accompanying chart) of Hebrew and English family and genealogy terms. For the impatient, the list of terms is at the bottom of this post. Keep in mind one thing when looking at the list – it’s a first draft and I expect it to change based on input from others and the comments made below. The list is not a dictate, it’s a discussion.

Hebrew-English Family Terms Chart 0.2

The following is the background on why I’ve put this together, what the issues were, and where I found the information.

Recently I’ve been thinking about creating Hebrew versions of my B&F Forms System. As I’ve mentioned before, my collection of genealogy forms are designed to work together, connecting in ways that are fairly unique. I don’t know how many people have used my forms, as there’s no way to track their usage when they’re shared. I do know, however, that my forms have been downloaded over 40,000 times from this web site, and have been used by schools and other organizations, so I can only assume the number of people who have used them is higher.

B&F Ancestor Form
B&F Ancestor Form

I’ve long wanted to translate the forms into Hebrew, but for many reasons, many of them technical such as no longer having the software I used to create the original forms, I’ve never been able to do it. Recently I’ve been looking into the idea of finally translating the forms, so I’ve been doing research to insure all the terms I use are correct. In my research I found no extensive glossary of family and genealogy terms in Hebrew, although there were many partial lists. That led me to start putting together my own, which I am presenting below. I’d like people to think of this as a beta version, however, as I’m not 100% certain on all the terms, as I’ll explain in detail. I also know that there are more terms to add in the future. This is the beginning of what I imagine will be a long discussion.

When I speak to people who learned English as a second language, invariably they describe it as a difficult language to learn. Primarily the problem people have with English is that there are so many exceptions to the rules, that it almost seems like there are no rules. Hebrew has a different problem, although it certainly has its own problem with exceptions. Hebrew, of course, has been in use for thousands of years. As a spoken language, however, it has a large gap in its history. Even two thousand years ago, many Jews spoke Aramaic or Greek in daily life, and reserved Hebrew for religious rites and scholarship. That’s not so different from the nearly thousand years that Yiddish was the primary spoken language of Ashkenazi Jews in Europe, or Ladino was used by Sephardic Jews after the expulsion from Spain in 1492. However you look at it, until the foundation of the state of Israel, it had been well over two thousand years since Hebrew had been widely spoken by people as their native language.

Academy of the Hebrew Language
Academy of the Hebrew Language

One of the most amazing achievements of the Zionist movement in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which some would describe as miraculous, was the revival of Hebrew as a spoken language. This is the only time in history that a language with no native speakers at the time was turned into a national language with millions of speakers. That process was started by individuals, most famously Eliezer Ben Yehuda, and continued by committee, and eventually by the Academy of the Hebrew Language, which was established in 1953 and tasked by the Israeli government to direct the development of the language.

With all of that, modern Hebrew remains a language in flux. Modern Hebrew starts with biblical Hebrew, but shows influences going back to Aramaic and Greek, on to Yiddish and Ladino, and more recent influences such as English and Arabic. While there is an Academy, that doesn’t mean people speak strictly by its rules. Certainly that is not the case. One good example is the use of the words Saba (סַבָּא) and Savta (סָבְתָא) for grandfather and grandmother. These words are universally used, but strictly speaking, not the proper Hebrew terms (they are in fact Aramaic, not Hebrew). The correct terms are actually Sav (סָב) and Sava (סָבָה), but I’ve never heard anyone use those terms. Additionally the correct term for grandmother (Sava) sounds a lot like the actually used term for grandfather (Saba). Remember that in Hebrew B and V are the same letter (the letter bet ב, B with a dot in the middle and V without). Another example is that the offical term for great-grandfather is Av Shileish (אָב שִׁלֵּשׁ), while the universally used term is Saba Raba (סַבָּא רַבָּא). Moreover, while the correct female version of this would be Savta Rabta (סָבְתָא רַבְּתָא), it seems many people say Savta Raba (סָבְתָא רַבָּא).

Another problem with figuring out the correct terms to use is the fact that Hebrew is a gendered language. There are no generic terms such as ‘cousin’ or ‘grandparent’. At best, one would use the male version of the word when lacking gender specificity, but that can lead to some confusion. In another example of official words versus actual usage, the official word for cousin is Dodan (דּוֹדָן) in the masculine, and Dodanit (דּוֹדָנִית) in the feminine. Many people, however, people use the terms Ben Dode (בֶּן דּוֹד) and Bat Dode (בַּת דּוֹד) instead. Literally those terms mean Son of Uncle and Daughter of Uncle. You could also say בֶּן דוֹדָה (Son of Aunt) or בַּת דוֹדָה (Daughter of Aunt), and some people do this, but some people also fall back on just using דּוֹד generically. In any of those four cases, however, the term literally refers to one’s first cousin (the child of your aunt or uncle). As such there essentially is no term for first cousin in Hebrew. You could say בֶּן דּוֹד רִאשׁוֹן if you wanted to be specific, but it’s not very common. In my experience Israelis describe the relationships they are trying to convey, and don’t necessarily use the ‘correct’ terms.

One example which took me some time to figure out was what to call a great-uncle or great-aunt. When I asked my neighbor, she said she would describe them as the brother or sister of her grandparent. When I told her I had come across the terms Dod Raba (דּוֹד רַבָּא) and Doda Rabta (דּוֹדָה רַבְּתָא) she had clearly never heard of them. If someone were to use these terms in speaking, I suspect that the female would end up being Doda Raba, similar to how Savta Ravta is normally used as Savta Raba. Interestingly the Academy shows these terms (not דּוֹדָה רַבָּא which is said, but not grammatically correct), but also Dod Gadol (דּוֹד גָּדוֹל) and Doda Gadola (דּוֹדָה גְּדוֹלָה), which may come from the English terms great-uncle and great-aunt (although Raba also means great).

Another interesting example is that Hebrew, unlike English, has specific words for great-grandson and great-granddaughter. While the terms for grandson and granddaughter are Neched (נֶכֶד) and Nechda (נֶכְדָּה) respectively, the terms for great-grandson and great-granddaughter are Nin (נִין) and Nina (נִינָה). How would you say great-great-grandson? Officially the term is Khimaish (חִמֵּשׁ), which comes from the Hebrew word for five, but in practice I think the real usage is Ben Nin (בֶּן נִין), which means ‘son of great-grandson’. Also, like the word for cousin, which means ‘son of uncle’, if you wanted to say great-great-granddaughter, you would say Bat Nin (בַּת נִין) which means ‘daughter of great-grandson’ even if the girl in question was the daughter of one’s great-granddaughter (although you could say בַּת נִינָה if you wanted to).

Choosing the terms to use, therefore, is a bit complicated. One thinks of the lexicographical debates in the past over descriptive versus prescriptive definitions. I tend towards the descriptive approach, as if something isn’t being used in real life, it’s not that useful. When there are terms that are not widely used as all, I tried to stick to the official terms, unless they seemed out of the pattern of other similar terms. I welcome discussion of these terms in the comments below. I imagine some people will disagree with the choices I have made.

To research these terms I looked at various dictionaries (including Morfix and Milog), but also online forums where these terms were discussed, articles that discussed the terms, as well as talking with native Hebrew speakers to understand what terms they used in the real world. Some of the sources include the Academy of the Hebrew Language’s Term Database and articles there as well (עברית לכל המשפחה, איך ייקראו בן הנין ואחי הסב?, חם וחמות, חותן וחותנת, פרשת וירא – נִין), several articles across different sites (1, 2, 3, 4), and the Tapuz Forum (some example threads include: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8). That last Tapuz link was amusingly a discussion of families in Harry Potter.

Wikigenia Cousin Chart
Wikigenia Cousin Chart

After piecing together most of my list, I found a cousin chart which confirms most of what I had determined for cousins, laying it out very nicely. One problem with the system used in the chart (going from בֶּן נִין to נֶכֶד נִין to נִין נִין to בֶּן נִין נִין) is that it becomes hard to calculate the further you go. I agree that’s the general consensus on what people would do, but I wish there was a simpler way to do it. It seems there is no set method of laying out these relationships. Another problem is the term for ‘removed’ which I’ll discuss below.

Reverso Context
Reverso Context

One site that was useful in finding real world usage of these terms is Reverso Context, which for the term great-great-grandson, includes the following real-world examples: נֶכֶד הריבע, נֶכֶד שֶׁל נֶכֶד, and נֶכֶד רַבָּא רַבָּא. In English, those would be grandson of grandson, grandson the fourth, and great-great-grandson. Interestingly, none of the examples include בֶּן נִין from the chart mentioned above. Keep in mind when looking at Reverso Context that not all the translations are accurate. They are for the most part taken from an interesting source – a public database of movie sub-titles. Those sub-title files are likely not professionally translated but done by film enthusisats looking to share translations of movies into their own language. Transcriptions are done by everyday people and not professionals, however, that can actually be beneficial when trying to analyze regular usage in a non-academic setting.

Another example from Reverso Context is for the term great-great-grandfather, which is kind of the reverse of the above. Here we have the expected סָבָּא רַבָּא רַבָּא, but also סָבָּא שֶׁל הַסָבָּא ,סָבָּא רַבָּא נֶהְדָר, and סָבָּא ריבעה.

One more example where this gives some insight is how to explain cousins of different generations. In English we say first cousin twice removed, or third cousin once removed, etc. In the chart mentioned earlier, they use the term ‘מוּזָח’ which means moved, so בֶּן דּוֹד שְׁלִישִׁי מוּזָח פָּעַם אַחַת is third cousin moved one time. In Reverso Context, a common usage is הוּסַר, which means to remove. This could simply be because there is no established terminology here, and these examples are people who are simply translating the English term. Other terms used include מֶדּוֹר which means from generation (i.e. בֶּן דּוֹד מֶדּוֹר שְׁלִישִׁי for first cousin from the third generation) and מַדְרֵגָה which means level (ie. בֶּן הַדּוֹד הַרִאשׁוֹן מַדְרֵגָה שְׁנִיָּיה for first cousin level two). This is confusing since some people say בֶּן דּוֹד מַדְרֵגָה שְׁנִיָּיה to mean second cousin. For that reason I would avoid using מַדְרֵגָה in this case. At this point it seems that whoever is using a word for this concept is making it up as they go. When discussing this issue with a friend, they suggested a better word might be מוזז, which can mean removed or shifted, and now I have about five candidates. There is no ‘correct’ term, at least in the sense of being approved by the Academy of the Hebrew Language. One way to get such terms approved is probably to get them put to use in the real world. For the time being I’m going with מוזז, and I welcome discussion in the comments below on what you think of this term, and what you use to describe cousins of different generations. If you have real-world examples, particularly published in books or news media, that would be helpful.

Lastly, the goal for this list, and the accompanying chart at the top of the page, is to help family researchers who speak English to figure out what terms to use in Hebrew, and also for Hebrew speakers to figure out what terms to use in English. I’m hoping this will help everyone communicate better, and with a bit more precision, when conversing with family or archives in English speaking countries and in Israel. For those terms that are not well known, perhaps this list will help them receive some use, and for those those concepts that did not have established terms, hopefully this list will help spur on the approval of such terms.

Below is the full list of terms. This is a first draft, so if you see an error, please post it in the comments below. I will correct the list and update it (and the chart at the top) over time. I’ve strived to find the middle ground between what is really used in Hebrew, and what is ‘correct’ according to the academy. Usually the academy recognizes other uses and lists them, even if they’re not preferred, so I’m only switching their order of preference.

For the transliterations, note that I use kh to represent the letter khet (ח), which represents a sound that is not used in English. While you can very roughly approximate the pronunciation of words that begin with kh by dropping the k (i.e. haam instead of khaam), that doesn’t work when the letter is at the end of the word (i.e. ah instead of akh).

In the table below columns are sortable, and you can search a term as well in the search box at the top. If you think there are terms that should be added (and I’m sure there are) please post your idea to the comments below.

HebrewTransliterationEnglish
גֶּנֶאָלוֹגְיָהgenelogyagenealogy
מִשְׁפָּחָהmishpakhafamily
בֵּן מִשְׁפָּחָהben mishpakhafamily member
אִילַן יֻחֲסִיןilan yukhasinfamily tree
אָב קַדְמוֹןav kadmonancestor
צֶאֱצָאtse'etsadescendant
אֵםaimmother
אָבavfather
אִמָּאeemamom
אַבָּאabbadad
הוֹרֶהhorehparent
אִשָׁהishawife
בַּעַלbaalhusband
בֶּן זוּגben zoogpartner (male)
בַּת זוּגbaht zoogpartner (female)
בַּתbahtdaughter
בֵּןbenson
אָחakhbrother
אָחוֹתakhotsister
אַחַאיakhaisibling
סַבָּאsabagrandfather
סָבְתָאsavtagrandmother
סַבָּא רַבָּאsaba rabagreat-grandmother
סָבְתָא רַבְּתָאsavta rabagreat-grandmother
סַבָּא רַבָּא רַבָּאsaba raba rabagreat-great-grandfather
סָבְתָא רַבְּתָא רַבְּתָאsavta rabta rabtagreat-great-grandmother
דּוֹד רַבָּאdode rabagreat-uncle
דוֹדָה רַבְּתָאdoda rabtagreat-aunt
נֶכֶדnekhedgrandson
נֶכְדָּהnekhdagranddaughter
נִיןningreat-grandson
נִינָהninagreat-granddaughter
בֶּן נִיןben ningreat-great-grandson
בַּת נִיןbat ningreat-great-granddaughter
דוֹדdodeuncle
דוֹדָהdodaaunt
אַחְיָןakhyannephew
אַחְיָנִיתakhyanitniece
בֶּן דוֹדben dodemale cousin, cousin
בַּת דוֹדָהbaat dodafemale cousin
בֶּן דּוֹד שֵׁנִיben dode shenisecond cousin
בַּת דּוֹדָה שְׁנִיָּהbat doda shniasecond cousin (female)
בֶּן דּוֹד שְׁלִישִׁיben dode shlishithird cousin
בַּת דּוֹדָה שְׁלִישִׁיתbat doda shlishitthird cousin (female)
בֶּן דּוֹד מוּזָז פָּעַם אַחַתben dode muzaz pa'am akhatfirst cousin once removed
בֶּן דּוֹד שְׁלִישִׁי מוּזָז פַּעֲמַיִםben dode shlishi muzaz pa'amayimthird cousin twice removed
בֶּן דּוֹד רְבִיעִי מוּזָז שָׁלוֹשׁ פְּעָמִיםben dode rivee'ee muzaz shalosh pa'amimfourth cousin three times removed
בֶּן דּוֹד רָחוֹקben dode rakhokedistant cousin
חָםkhaamfather-in-law (can refer to the father either spouse, but when using חוֹתֵן for the father of the wife, חָם is used as father of the husband)
חָמוֹתkhaamotmother-in-law (can refer to the mother either spouse, but when using חוֹתֶנֶת for the mother of the wife, חָמוֹת is used as mother of the husband)
חוֹתֵןkhotainfather-in-law (only used as the father of the wife)
חוֹתֶנֶתkhotenetmother-in-law (only used as the mother of the wife)
מְחֻתָּנִיםmakhutanimrelated by marriage
כַּלָהkalladaughter-in-law/bride
חָתָןkhatanson-in-law/groom
גִיסgeesbrother-in-law
גִיסָהgeesasister-in-law
גִּיסָןgeesanbrother of brother/sister-in-law
גִּיסָנִיתgeesanitsister of brother/sister-in-law
אָב חוֹרֵגav khoregstepfather
אֵם חוֹרֶגֶתaim khoregetstepmother
בֶּן חוֹרֵגben khoregstep-son, step-child
בַּת חוֹרֶגֶתbaat khoregetstep-daughter
אָח חוֹרֵגakh khoregstep-brother
אָחוֹת חוֹרֶגֶתakhot khoregetstep-sister
אָח לְמֶחֱצָהakh limekhetzahalf-brother
אָחוֹת לְמֶחֱצָהakhot limekhetzahalf-sister
שֵׁם פְּרַטִיshem pratigiven name
שֵׁם מִשׁפָּחָהshem mishpachasurname
שֵׁם קָדוֹשׁ/שֵׁם עִבְרִיshem kodesh/shem ivrireligious name (literally holy name/hebrew name)
כִּנּוּיkinnuisecular name/nickname
שֵׁם הַנְּעוּרִיםshem haniurimmaiden name
לֵידַהlaedabirth
תְּעוּדַת לֵידַהteudat laedabirth certificate
תַּאֲרִיךְ לֵידַהta'areech laedadate of birth
אֶרֶץ לֵידַה eretz laedacountry of birth
מָקוֹם לֵידַהmakom laedaplace of birth
תַּאֲרִיךְ לֵידַה עִבְרִיta'areech laeda ivriHebrew date of birth
תַּאֲרִיךְ לֵידַה לוֹעֲזִיta'areech laeda loaziforeign (Gregorian) date of birth
יוֹם הוּלֶדֶתyom huledetbirthday
בְּרִית מִילָהbrit milahcircumcision
יָתוֹםyatomorphan
אִמּוּץeemootsadoption
אֵרוּסִיןerusinengagement
קִדוּשִׁיןkedushinmarriage ceremony
כְּתֻבָּהketubahJewish marriage contract
תְּעוּדַת נִשּׂוּאִיםteudat nisuinmarriage certificate
חֲתוּנָהkhatunawedding
נִשׂוּאִיןnisuinmarriage
תַּאֲרִיךְ נִשׂוּאִיןta'areech nisuinwedding date
גֵּרוּשִׁיןgaerushindivorce
גֵּטgetJewish divorce certificate
תְּעוּדַת גֵּרוּשִׁיןteudat gaerushindivorce certificate
מָוֶתmavetdeath
תַּאֲרִיךְ פְּטִירָהta'areech petiradate of death
מָקוֹם פְּטִירָהmakom petiraplace of death
תְּעוּדַת פְּטִירָהteudat petirahdeath certificate
בֵּית עָלְמִין, בֵּית קְבָרוֹתbeit almin, beit kvarotcemetery
קְבוּרָהkivurahburial
רִשָּׁיוֹן קְבוּרָהrishayon kivurahburial license
חֶבְרָה קַדִּישָׁאkhevra kadishaburial society
קֶבֶרkevergrave
תַּכְרִיךְtakhreekhburial shroud
מַצֵּבָהmatzevahtombstone
מוֹדַעַת אֵבֶלmoda'at avelobituary
הֶסְפֵּדhespedeulogy
שֶׁלְאַחַר הַמָוֶתshel'akhar hamavetposthumous
יְרוּשָּׁהyerushainheritance, legacy
עִזָּבוֹןeezabonestate
אִשׁוּר צַוָאָהishur tsava'aprobate
הִתְאַזְרְחוּתhitazrikhutenaturalization
אֶזרָחוּתezrakhutecitizenship
הֲגִירָהhagirahimmigration/emigration
מְהַגֵרmihagareimmigrant/emigrant
עוֹלֶהolehimmigrant to Israel
יוֹרֵדyoredemigrant from Israel
רְשִׁימָהrishimaregister
עִתּוֹןeetonenewspaper
רָצוֹןratsonwill
מִפְקָדmeefkadcensus
רְשִׁימָת נוֹסְעִיםrishimat nosimpassenger list
מִצַד הַאָבmitsad ha'avpaternal/patrilineal
מִצַד הַאֵםmitsad ha'aimmaternal/matrilineal
יִחוּסyikhuspedigree
מָקוֹר רִאשׁוֹנִיmakor rishoniprimary source
מָקוֹר מִשְׁנִיmakor mishenisecondary source
כְּפָרkfarvillage
עִירeercity
עִיר לֵידַהeer laedabirth city
מָחוֹזmakhozcounty
מְדִינָהmedinahstate/country
אֶרֶץeretzland/country
מַעַןma'anaddress
מְגוּרִיםmigurimresidence
רְשׁוּמוֹת חִיּוּנִיrishumot khiunivital records
שֵׁמוֹן גֵּאוֹגְרָפִיshaemon geografigazeteer
מִיקרוֹפִילםmeekrofilmmicrofilm
מִיקרוֹפִישmeekrofeeshmicrofiche
תַּאֲרִיךְta'areechdate
יוֹםyomeday
חֹדֶשׁkhodeshmonth
שָׁנָהshanayear
יָנוּאָרyanuarJanuary
פֶבְּרוּאָרfebruarFebruary
מֶרְץmaertsMarch
אַפְּרִילaprilApril
מַאיmaiMay
יוּנִיyuniJune
יוּלִיyuliJuly
אוֹגוּסְטohgoostAugust
סֶפְּטֶמְבֶּרseptemberSeptember
אוֹקְטוֹבֶּרoctoberOctober
נוֹבֶמְבֶּרnovemberNovember
דֶּצֶמְבֶּרdetsemberDecember

101 Most Popular Jewish Girls Names in Israel in 2015

[Update: The lists for 2016, 2017-2018, and 2019 are now available.]

Last year I published the 101 most popular girls names in Israel for 2014, and now that there is data for 2015 I wanted to post the updated list. For this list I’ve included both the 2015 and 2014 rankings, so you can see how the ranking of the name has changed. For boys names, see 101 Most Popular Jewish Boys Names in Israel in 2015

Of note, while the names definitely moved around, only two names left the list (sorry Chava and Alona). The new names on the list are Gali and Yuli.

Names have been translated and/or transliterated into English as necessary. In some cases, if the name is used in English in both forms (translated and transliterated), they are both presented in English.

The table below can be sorted by name in either Hebrew or English.

2015 Rank2014 RankName (Hebrew)Name (English)Number
11נוֹעָהNoa1445
22תָּמָרTamar1323
34מַאיָהMaya1144
48אֲבִיגַיִלAbigail1141
57טַלְיָהTalia1081
66אַדֶלAdele1074
73שִׁירָהShira1058
89איילהAyala1038
95יָעֵלYael1022
1010שָׂרָהSarah972
1119רוֹנִיRoni807
1217רוֹמִיRomi759
1314חַנָּהChana (Hanna)753
1416לִיָהLia734
1513מִיכַלMichal707
1611אֶסְתֵּרEsther692
1712נוֹיָהNoya692
1821הוֹדָיָהHodaya641
1918רִבְקָהRivka (Rebecca)639
2015אֵלָהElah638
2124יוּבַלYuval631
2220רָחֵלRachel618
2326מִרְיָםMiriam613
2427חַיָּהChaya582
2523אֲגַםAgam555
2622עַלְמָהAlma551
2732נָעֳמִיNaomi542
2829אֲרִיאֵלAriel539
2933רוּתRuth527
3025תָּהֶלTahal523
3134נֹגַהּNoga509
3230הִילָּהHila507
3335אֵמָהEmma504
3428עֲדִיAdi463
3540אֶפְרָתEfrat458
3631לִיאַןLian/Leanne456
3739גַּאיָהGaia434
3836מַעֲיָיןMaayan423
3937הללHallel413
4042תְּהִילָּהTehila410
4141לֵאָהLeah384
4252אמיליEmily382
4355יָהֵלִיYaheli373
4450אוריהUria/Oria370
4551עופריOfri367
4638הָדָרHadar364
4748נַעֲמָהNaama362
4860שִׁירShir360
4959שָׁקֵדShaked357
5053טוֹהָרTohar356
5143נוֹעַםNoam349
5245נטעNeta348
5368אֱלִישֶׁבַעElisheva (Elizabeth)346
5467אֲבִישַׁגAvishag344
5561מַלְכָּהMalka334
5646מִיקָהMika325
5756יְהוּדִיתYehudit (Judith)323
5857הֲדַסHadas322
5949עָמִיתAmit319
6054אוריOri316
6144אוֹרOr302
6247הֲדַסָּהHadassa302
6358אוֹפִירOphir295
6462לִיבִּיLibi294
6563לִיאֵלLiel292
6671אַלְיָהAliya289
6765מוֹרִיָּהMoriah279
6864דָּנִיֵּאלDaniel278
6974דְּבוֹרָהDvora (Deborah)277
7072גֶּפֶןGefen276
7178יַרְדֵּןYarden (Jordan)267
7275שַׁחַרShachar261
7379נֶחָמָהNechama250
7466עֵדֶןEden248
7570שָׁנִיShani226
7683מַאיMay225
7795עוֹמֶרOmer224
7886אֲבִיָּהAvia221
7976אנאלAnael220
8085שַׁיShai220
8190אַלְמָהAlma219
8269אָלִיןAleen214
8389בַּת שֶׁבַעBatsheva212
8473גִּילִיGili212
8592שַׁי-לִיShaily211
8691דָּנִיֵּאלָהDaniella209
8781אוֹדֶלOdele199
8884זוֹהַרZohar197
89106גַּלִּיGali193
9080לִיאוֹרLior190
9187אוֹרִיןOrin188
9299יַעֲרָהYaara188
9393הִילִיHili182
9494אָבִיבAviv181
95101כַּרְמֶלCarmel179
9688אֲבִיטַלAvital172
9782בִּרָכָהBracha170
9877רוֹתֶםRotem161
99132יוּלִיYuli (July)158
10098צִפּוֹרָהTziporah157
10196שִּילָתShilat154

101 Most Popular Jewish Boys Names in Israel in 2015

[Update: The lists for 2016, 2017-2018, and 2019 are now available.]

Last year I published the 101 most popular boys names in Israel for 2014, and now that there is data for 2015 I wanted to post the updated list. For this list I’ve included both the 2015 and 2014 rankings, so you can see how the ranking of the name has changed. For girls names see 101 Most Popular Jewish Girls Names in Israel in 2015.

The names that left the list this are Avishai, Yedidya, Tom, Elad, Ovadia, and Ilay. The new names are Elroi, Bnaya, Orel, Maayan, Yehoshua, and Imri.

Names have been translated and/or transliterated into English as necessary. In some cases, if the name is used in English in both forms (translated and transliterated), they are both presented in English.

The table below can be sorted by name in either Hebrew or English.

2015 Rank2014 RankName (Hebrew)Name (English)Number
11נוֹעַםNoam1414
23דָּוִדDavid1400
32אוריUri/Ori1320
47אֲרִיאֵלAriel1253
55אֵיתָןEitan (Ethan)1247
64יוֹסֵףJoseph1194
76אִיתַּיItai1156
89יְהוֹנָתָןYehonatan1127
98דָּנִיֵּאלDaniel1115
1010מֹשֶׁהMoshe1013
1115אִיתָמָרItamar879
1213עִידּוֹIdo870
1311אַבְרָהָםAbraham859
1414יְהוּדָהYehuda (Judah)795
1512יוֹנָתָןYonatan (Jonathan)793
1616יָאִירYair767
1730שְׁמוּאֵלShmuel (Samuel)729
1817עוֹמֶרOmer707
1918יִשְׂרָאֵלYisrael (Israel)702
2023הַרְאֵלHarel689
2120יַעֲקֹבYaakov (Jacob)675
2225מִיכָאֵלMichael664
2321יִצְחָקYitzchak (Isaac)658
2428חַיִּיםChaim617
2524אַלְיָהEliya610
2636לָבִיאLavi609
2719אַלּוֹןElon584
2827גַּיְאGuy575
2922עָמִיתAmit573
3026עִילָּאִיIlay551
3135שִׁמְעוֹןShimon (Simon)550
3237רְפָאֵלRaphael546
3332שְׁלֹמֹהShlomo (Solomon)533
3429נהוראיNehorai473
3531בֵּןBen470
3640אַהֲרוֹןAharon (Aaron)457
3734נְתַנְאֵלNetanel455
3841נָדָבNadav434
3954אֵלִיָּהוּEliyahu423
4044אוֹרOr422
4146בִּנְיָמִיןBenjamin420
4233אָדָםAdam414
4345נִיתַּאיNitai407
4438מֵאִירMeir404
4539לִיאַםLiam399
4643יוֹאָבYoav398
4751יִשַׁיYishai393
4859הללHillel/Hallel391
4948מָרְדְּכַיMordechai390
5049מְנַחֵםMenachem369
5152רוֹעִיRoi358
5242יוּבַלYuval356
5357יַנַּאיYanai350
5456עוֹמֶרִיOmri344
5553מָאוֹרMaor336
5662אֶבְיָתָרEviatar326
5758נָתָןNatan (Nathan)325
5868אֲבִיאֵלAviel305
5950לִיאוֹרLior302
6047עִידָּןIdan294
6161מַתָּןMatan285
6255אָבִיבAviv277
6366שַׁחַרShachar273
6464אוֹפִירOphir266
65128אֵלרוֹאִיElroi266
6665איילEyal260
67120בְּנָיָהBnaya247
6869אוּרִיאֵלUriel242
6960דּוֹרDor237
7063אָסָףAsaf232
7167יָהֵלִיYaheli229
7284אֱלִיאָבEliav223
7373נוהNeveh222
7495לִירוֹיLeroi221
7576יַהַבYahav218
76103אוֹרְאֵלOrel217
7780בְּאֵרִיBeeri216
7874נְבוֹNevo215
7981דְּבִירDvir214
8070אוֹפֶקOfek213
8182יִנּוֹןYinon210
8272אֶלְחָנָןElchanan204
83105מַעֲיָיןMaayan204
8492שָׁלוֹםShalom204
8587שִׁילֹהShilo200
8693נֵרִיָּהNeriah198
8789נַחְמָןNachman195
8893עוֹזOz195
8990אֲמִיתַּיAmitai194
9075יָרִיןYarin191
9179תּוֹמֶרTomer189
9291רוֹםRom188
9371רוֹןRon186
9478אוריהUriah184
9583צְבִיZvi184
9694אֵלִיעֶזֶרEliezer180
9788שַׁיShai180
98117יְהוֹשֻׁעַYehoshua (Joshua)179
9996יוֹתָםYotam179
100124אִימְרִיImri178
10185דָּןDan177

101 Most Popular Jewish Boys Names in Israel in 2014

[Update: The lists for 20152016, 2017-2018, and 2019 are now available.]

Following yesterday’s posting of the 101 Most Popular Jewish Girls Names in Israel in 2014, I here present the most popular boys names. These names are taken from just-released information from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Names have been translated and/or transliterated into English as necessary. In some cases, if the name is used in English in both forms (translated and transliterated), they are both presented in English.

The table below can be sorted by name in either Hebrew or English.

RankName (Hebrew)Name (English)Number
1נוֹעַםNoam1608
2אוריUri/Ori1477
3דָּוִדDavid1408
4יוֹסֵףJoseph1344
5אֵיתָןEitan (Ethan)1275
6אִיתַּיItai1274
7אֲרִיאֵלAriel1252
8דָּנִיֵּאלDaniel1191
9יְהוֹנָתָןYehonatan1130
10מֹשֶׁהMoshe1017
11אַבְרָהָםAbraham908
12יוֹנָתָןYonatan (Jonathan)887
13עִידּוֹIdo878
14יְהוּדָהYehuda (Judah)856
15אִיתָמָרItamar851
16יָאִירYair825
17עוֹמֶרOmer695
18יִשְׂרָאֵלYisrael (Israel)695
19אַלּוֹןElon673
20יַעֲקֹבYaakov (Jacob)666
21יִצְחָקYitzchak (Isaac)637
22עָמִיתAmit607
23הַרְאֵלHarel606
24אַלְיָהEliya603
25מִיכָאֵלMichael597
26עִילָּאִיIlay592
27גַּיְאGuy563
28חַיִּיםChaim551
29נהוראיNehorai540
30שְׁמוּאֵלShmuel (Samuel)534
31בֵּןBen496
32שְׁלֹמֹהShlomo (Solomon)477
33אָדָםAdam475
34נְתַנְאֵלNetanel475
35שִׁמְעוֹןShimon (Simon)469
36לָבִיאLavi468
37רְפָאֵלRaphael456
38מֵאִירMeir452
39לִיאַםLiam450
40אַהֲרוֹןAharon (Aaron)434
41נָדָבNadav431
42יוּבַלYuval422
43יוֹאָבYoav418
44אוֹרOr415
45נִיתַּאיNitai403
46בִּנְיָמִיןBenjamin391
47עִידָּןIdan382
48מָרְדְּכַיMordechai382
49מְנַחֵםMenachem377
50לִיאוֹרLior374
51יִשַׁיYishai370
52רוֹעִיRoi366
53מָאוֹרMaor356
54אֵלִיָּהוּEliyahu353
55אָבִיבAviv350
56עוֹמֶרִיOmri332
57יַנַּאיYanai326
58נָתָןNatan (Nathan)323
59הללHillel/Hallel322
60דּוֹרDor319
61מַתָּןMatan319
62אֶבְיָתָרEviatar312
63אָסָףAsaf296
64אוֹפִירOphir295
65איילEyal291
66שַׁחַרShachar283
67יָהֵלִיYaheli259
68אֲבִיאֵלAviel258
69אוּרִיאֵלUriel252
70אוֹפֶקOfek241
71רוֹןRon222
72אֶלְחָנָןElchanan220
73נוהNeveh216
74נְבוֹNevo212
75יָרִיןYarin211
76יַהַבYahav211
77עוֹבַדְיָהOvadia (Obadiah)208
78אוריהUriah202
79תּוֹמֶרTomer201
80בְּאֵרִיBeeri201
81דְּבִירDvir201
82יִנּוֹןYinon200
83צְבִיZvi198
84אֱלִיאָבEliav196
85דָּןDan194
86תּוֹםTom191
87שִׁילֹהShilo190
88שַׁיShai186
89נַחְמָןNachman185
90אֲמִיתַּיAmitai184
91רוֹםRom183
92שָׁלוֹםShalom182
93נֵרִיָּהNeria181
94אֵלעָזָרElazar181
95לִירוֹיLeroi179
96יוֹתָםYotam175
97אוֹשֶׁרOsher173
98עִילַיIlay172
99אֵלעָדElad168
100אֲבִישַׁיAvishai167
101יְדִידְיָהYedidya165