Fun Facts About the Name Messiah
- More than 28 thousand babies named Messiah: U.S. records list 28,072 babies given the name Messiah from 1880 through 2025. Even 1,035 girls received the name Messiah - about 1 girl for every 26 boys.
What Does the Name Messiah Mean?
Messiah comes from Hebrew mashiach (מָשִׁיחַ), "anointed one," from the verb mashach, "to anoint" - to smear or rub with oil. In the Hebrew Bible the word describes someone set apart by anointing: kings such as Saul and David, priests, and in one passage the Persian king Cyrus. The Greek translation of the Hebrew scriptures, the Septuagint, rendered mashiach as christos, also "anointed," which is why the Greek-derived title "Christ" and the Hebrew-derived "Messiah" share a literal sense. The literal meaning is "anointed one"; the familiar religious sense of an expected deliverer grew out of that literal sense rather than replacing it.
Messiah Name History & Origins
In the Hebrew Bible, mashiach is used of people consecrated by anointing with oil, including King David and, in the book of Isaiah, the Persian king Cyrus. After the biblical period, Jewish tradition developed the expectation of a future mashiach, a descendant of David who would restore Israel, and this is the sense the word carries in rabbinic writing.
Greek-speaking Jews and early Christians used christos to translate the Hebrew term, and the New Testament applies it to Jesus, so that "Jesus Christ" is a title joined to a personal name. The English form "Messiah" reached the language through Greek Messias and Latin Messias, the spelling found in some English translations of the Gospel of John, where the word is glossed as "anointed." English therefore took the term from Hebrew by way of those intermediary forms rather than directly.
As a personal name in English, Messiah is a modern usage, distinct from the long-established religious title. It belongs to a recent pattern of giving theological words as first names rather than to the older stock of English personal names, and it carries the anointing etymology as a religious term, not as a traditional naming inheritance.
How Popular is the Name Messiah?
Messiah recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2021. Its best rank was #172 in 2021.
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 | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #10,635 | 9 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #7,814 | 14 | 0.0009% |
| 2023 | #8,337 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2022 | #5,904 | 21 | 0.0013% |
| 2021 | #4,213 | 34 | 0.0021% |
| 2020 | #5,123 | 25 | 0.0015% |
| 2019 | #5,403 | 24 | 0.0014% |
| 2018 | #4,213 | 34 | 0.0020% |
| 2017 | #3,817 | 40 | 0.0023% |
| 2016 | #3,755 | 41 | 0.0023% |
| 2015 | #3,331 | 49 | 0.0027% |
| 2014 | #3,895 | 39 | 0.0022% |
| 2013 | #3,979 | 38 | 0.0022% |
| 2012 | #3,348 | 49 | 0.0028% |
| 2011 | #3,120 | 54 | 0.0031% |
| 2010 | #3,291 | 50 | 0.0028% |
| 2009 | #3,152 | 54 | 0.0029% |
| 2008 | #2,878 | 62 | 0.0033% |
| 2007 | #2,775 | 66 | 0.0034% |
| 2006 | #2,501 | 74 | 0.0039% |
| 2005 | #3,628 | 41 | 0.0022% |
| 2004 | #3,308 | 46 | 0.0025% |
| 2003 | #4,383 | 30 | 0.0016% |
| 2002 | #4,851 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 2001 | #7,201 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2000 | #3,637 | 36 | 0.0020% |
| 1999 | #4,411 | 26 | 0.0015% |
| 1998 | #9,832 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1997 | #11,659 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1996 | #15,030 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1994 | #14,927 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #207 | 1,666 | 0.0975% |
| 2024 | #203 | 1,734 | 0.1011% |
| 2023 | #189 | 1,914 | 0.1120% |
| 2022 | #187 | 2,019 | 0.1157% |
| 2021 | #172 | 2,231 | 0.1276% |
| 2020 | #190 | 2,035 | 0.1180% |
| 2019 | #193 | 2,035 | 0.1135% |
| 2018 | #203 | 2,000 | 0.1102% |
| 2017 | #198 | 1,985 | 0.1073% |
| 2016 | #217 | 1,793 | 0.0945% |
| 2015 | #243 | 1,516 | 0.0791% |
| 2014 | #298 | 1,188 | 0.0619% |
| 2013 | #334 | 974 | 0.0515% |
| 2012 | #389 | 768 | 0.0405% |
| 2011 | #635 | 369 | 0.0194% |
| 2010 | #649 | 371 | 0.0193% |
| 2009 | #665 | 369 | 0.0186% |
| 2008 | #700 | 337 | 0.0165% |
| 2007 | #718 | 322 | 0.0155% |
| 2006 | #800 | 256 | 0.0125% |
| 2005 | #905 | 198 | 0.0099% |
| 2004 | #1,156 | 136 | 0.0069% |
| 2003 | #1,231 | 118 | 0.0060% |
| 2002 | #1,293 | 105 | 0.0054% |
| 2001 | #1,323 | 99 | 0.0051% |
| 2000 | #1,232 | 109 | 0.0056% |
| 1999 | #1,300 | 94 | 0.0049% |
| 1998 | #2,117 | 44 | 0.0023% |
| 1997 | #2,660 | 30 | 0.0016% |
| 1996 | #3,078 | 24 | 0.0013% |
| 1995 | #2,535 | 30 | 0.0016% |
| 1994 | #4,455 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 1993 | #3,212 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 1992 | #3,076 | 22 | 0.0011% |
| 1991 | #4,666 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 1990 | #7,769 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1988 | #4,359 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1987 | #6,669 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1986 | #7,447 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1985 | #4,561 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1984 | #6,074 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1981 | #6,930 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1980 | #4,032 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 1979 | #6,721 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1978 | #6,445 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1977 | #5,601 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1976 | #5,376 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1975 | #5,229 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1974 | #4,064 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1973 | #5,610 | 5 | 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 Messiah Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have psychic power. You can carry on for others with joy. You have a receptive nature and may bear burdens for others. You are pragmatic, thorough, strong-willed, practical and stubborn at times. You are hard working, often martyr to duty. You like home and security above all. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You are always looking for an opportunity to achieve financial and emotional security. You are basically peacemaker. You understand the law of harmony and desire to balance your life with those around you. You may feel incomplete without someone to share your love, ideals, wealth or work. You can be very sensitive and could appear a bit shy and perceptive. You have developed intuition, patience and the ability to nurture others. You can achieve the state of happiness if you are willing to accept your needs in a complimentary relationship and go to create them.
✦ Messiah's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Messiah's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.