Fun Facts About the Name Adonijah
- 509 babies named Adonijah: U.S. records list 509 babies given the name Adonijah from 1880 through 2025. Even 26 girls received the name Adonijah - about 1 girl for every 19 boys.
What Does the Name Adonijah Mean?
Adonijah is a Hebrew name meaning "My Lord is Yah," with Yah a shortened form of the divine name Yahweh. It is formed from ʾadon ("lord" or "master"), the first-person suffix -i ("my"), and Yah. The longer Hebrew form Adoniyahu uses Yahu, an extended form of the same divine element.
Adonijah Name History & Origins
Adonijah appears in the Hebrew Bible as the name of several figures. The best known is David's fourth son, born to Haggith (2 Samuel 3:4). In 1 Kings 1, as David was old, Adonijah sought to succeed him with the support of Joab and Abiathar the priest. Nathan, Zadok, and Bathsheba opposed him, and David arranged for Solomon to be anointed king. After David's death, Adonijah asked to marry Abishag, David's nurse; Solomon treated the request as a claim on the throne and had him put to death (1 Kings 2:13 - 25). Other biblical bearers include a Levite sent out by King Jehoshaphat (2 Chronicles 17:8) and a signatory of the covenant in Nehemiah 10:16.
The Hebrew text has both Adoniyah and the longer Adoniyahu; 1 Chronicles 3:2 uses the longer form for David's son, while 2 Samuel 3:4 and 1 Kings 1 use the shorter one. Greek and Latin Bible traditions use forms such as Adonias, while English Bibles use Adonijah, a transliteration from the Hebrew.
How Popular is the Name Adonijah?
Adonijah has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2014. Its best rank was #3,301 in 2014.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2009 | #17,343 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2007 | #17,682 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2004 | #16,146 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1999 | #14,436 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1998 | #12,452 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #6,455 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2024 | #5,881 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2023 | #7,294 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2022 | #6,480 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2021 | #7,592 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #5,238 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 2019 | #5,158 | 18 | 0.0010% |
| 2018 | #5,548 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 2017 | #6,690 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2016 | #6,731 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2015 | #4,409 | 22 | 0.0011% |
| 2014 | #3,301 | 33 | 0.0017% |
| 2013 | #4,183 | 23 | 0.0012% |
| 2012 | #4,131 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 2011 | #4,356 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 2010 | #3,995 | 25 | 0.0013% |
| 2009 | #4,751 | 20 | 0.0010% |
| 2008 | #6,074 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2007 | #4,997 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 2006 | #6,464 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2005 | #6,230 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2004 | #5,814 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2003 | #5,271 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2002 | #4,323 | 18 | 0.0009% |
| 2001 | #6,018 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2000 | #5,044 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1999 | #7,888 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1998 | #6,323 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1996 | #6,507 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 1995 | #6,998 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1994 | #5,877 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1993 | #8,717 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1982 | #5,632 | 6 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
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How the Name Adonijah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
Powerful and complete. You are good intellectually and require several outlets for your energies. You are not a builder but a planner, and you want others to carry out your plans. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Adonijah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Adonijah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.