Fun Facts About the Name Samson
- More than 12 thousand babies named Samson: U.S. records list 12,874 babies given the name Samson from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Samson Mean?
Samson is a masculine name that comes from the Hebrew Shimshon (שִׁמְשׁוֹן), the name of the biblical judge in the Book of Judges. The Hebrew root is usually identified as shemesh (שֶׁמֶשׁ), "sun," with the ending -on understood as a diminutive, so the name is commonly glossed as "sun," "little sun," or "sun child." Because the biblical story has Samson born after his mother's long barrenness, some interpreters have connected the name instead to a different Hebrew root, shamem, "to be desolate or barren," and older scholarship proposed a link to Shamash, the Mesopotamian sun god. The sun derivation is the one most widely accepted, but the precise sense is not fully settled.
Samson Name History & Origins
Samson (Hebrew Shimshon) is known from the Book of Judges, chapters 13 - 16, where he appears as an Israelite judge and Nazirite whose strength is tied to his uncut hair, and whose story ends with Delilah's betrayal and his death in a Philistine temple. That biblical account is the earliest documented source for the name. It was carried into Greek as Sampson (Σαμψών), the form used in the Septuagint and also listed in the New Testament (Hebrews 11:32), and from Greek into Latin as Samson.
The name spread with Christianity rather than only through the Bible story. Saint Samson of Dol, a sixth-century monk and bishop associated with Wales and Brittany, is one of the earliest Christian bearers, and the name was used in medieval England and France. It also stayed in use in Jewish communities in its Hebrew form: Samson Wertheimer (1658 - 1724) was an Austrian court financier, and Samson Raphael Hirsch (1808 - 1888) was a German rabbi. In colonial America the Mohegan minister Samson Occom (1723 - 1792) is an early example of the name in English-speaking North America.
John Milton's closet drama Samson Agonistes (1671) is a well-known literary treatment of the biblical figure, but it is a much later use of a name already long established. Related forms in other languages include French Samson, Spanish Sansón, Italian Sansone, and Russian Samson.
How Popular is the Name Samson?
Samson recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2025. Its best rank was #477 in 2025.
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 | #477 | 639 | 0.0374% |
| 2024 | #522 | 582 | 0.0339% |
| 2023 | #563 | 517 | 0.0303% |
| 2022 | #584 | 490 | 0.0281% |
| 2021 | #590 | 473 | 0.0271% |
| 2020 | #565 | 495 | 0.0287% |
| 2019 | #574 | 487 | 0.0272% |
| 2018 | #546 | 512 | 0.0282% |
| 2017 | #602 | 440 | 0.0238% |
| 2016 | #577 | 481 | 0.0254% |
| 2015 | #619 | 434 | 0.0226% |
| 2014 | #627 | 420 | 0.0219% |
| 2013 | #671 | 360 | 0.0190% |
| 2012 | #801 | 280 | 0.0148% |
| 2011 | #868 | 243 | 0.0128% |
| 2010 | #863 | 244 | 0.0127% |
| 2009 | #878 | 241 | 0.0122% |
| 2008 | #945 | 214 | 0.0105% |
| 2007 | #893 | 225 | 0.0108% |
| 2006 | #892 | 220 | 0.0107% |
| 2005 | #1,098 | 151 | 0.0076% |
| 2004 | #956 | 176 | 0.0089% |
| 2003 | #1,005 | 158 | 0.0080% |
| 2002 | #890 | 183 | 0.0094% |
| 2001 | #907 | 173 | 0.0089% |
| 2000 | #897 | 174 | 0.0089% |
| 1999 | #943 | 155 | 0.0081% |
| 1998 | #998 | 138 | 0.0072% |
| 1997 | #975 | 135 | 0.0072% |
| 1996 | #1,056 | 116 | 0.0061% |
| 1995 | #1,009 | 122 | 0.0064% |
| 1994 | #966 | 131 | 0.0068% |
| 1993 | #977 | 123 | 0.0063% |
| 1992 | #995 | 119 | 0.0060% |
| 1991 | #1,040 | 108 | 0.0053% |
| 1990 | #920 | 126 | 0.0061% |
| 1989 | #1,063 | 97 | 0.0048% |
| 1988 | #831 | 131 | 0.0068% |
| 1987 | #1,008 | 89 | 0.0048% |
| 1986 | #1,093 | 74 | 0.0040% |
| 1985 | #873 | 109 | 0.0059% |
| 1984 | #907 | 95 | 0.0053% |
| 1983 | #953 | 86 | 0.0048% |
| 1982 | #988 | 84 | 0.0046% |
| 1981 | #984 | 85 | 0.0047% |
| 1980 | #965 | 87 | 0.0049% |
| 1979 | #988 | 81 | 0.0047% |
| 1978 | #1,147 | 60 | 0.0037% |
| 1977 | #987 | 76 | 0.0046% |
| 1976 | #1,065 | 62 | 0.0040% |
| 1975 | #1,403 | 40 | 0.0026% |
| 1974 | #1,148 | 52 | 0.0033% |
| 1973 | #1,289 | 42 | 0.0027% |
| 1972 | #1,447 | 35 | 0.0022% |
| 1971 | #1,197 | 48 | 0.0027% |
| 1970 | #1,457 | 34 | 0.0018% |
| 1969 | #1,560 | 28 | 0.0016% |
| 1968 | #1,422 | 31 | 0.0018% |
| 1967 | #1,567 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1966 | #1,679 | 22 | 0.0012% |
| 1965 | #1,769 | 21 | 0.0011% |
| 1964 | #1,428 | 31 | 0.0016% |
| 1963 | #1,656 | 24 | 0.0012% |
| 1962 | #1,665 | 24 | 0.0012% |
| 1961 | #1,515 | 29 | 0.0014% |
| 1960 | #1,850 | 20 | 0.0009% |
| 1959 | #1,856 | 20 | 0.0009% |
| 1958 | #1,585 | 25 | 0.0012% |
| 1957 | #1,785 | 21 | 0.0010% |
| 1956 | #1,413 | 31 | 0.0015% |
| 1955 | #1,639 | 23 | 0.0011% |
| 1954 | #1,663 | 22 | 0.0011% |
| 1953 | #1,505 | 26 | 0.0013% |
| 1952 | #1,485 | 27 | 0.0014% |
| 1951 | #1,594 | 23 | 0.0012% |
| 1950 | #1,494 | 25 | 0.0014% |
| 1949 | #2,434 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1948 | #2,204 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 1947 | #1,979 | 16 | 0.0009% |
| 1946 | #2,255 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1945 | #1,843 | 15 | 0.0011% |
| 1944 | #1,676 | 18 | 0.0013% |
| 1943 | #1,755 | 18 | 0.0013% |
| 1942 | #2,246 | 12 | 0.0009% |
| 1941 | #1,982 | 14 | 0.0011% |
| 1940 | #1,791 | 16 | 0.0014% |
| 1939 | #2,268 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1938 | #2,077 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1937 | #2,874 | 8 | 0.0008% |
| 1936 | #1,785 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1935 | #1,824 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1934 | #2,107 | 13 | 0.0013% |
| 1933 | #2,515 | 10 | 0.0010% |
| 1932 | #1,838 | 17 | 0.0016% |
| 1931 | #1,915 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1930 | #1,809 | 18 | 0.0016% |
| 1929 | #2,571 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1928 | #1,695 | 21 | 0.0019% |
| 1927 | #2,114 | 16 | 0.0014% |
| 1926 | #2,707 | 11 | 0.0010% |
| 1925 | #1,527 | 25 | 0.0022% |
| 1924 | #2,034 | 17 | 0.0015% |
| 1923 | #2,423 | 13 | 0.0012% |
| 1922 | #2,130 | 16 | 0.0015% |
| 1921 | #1,818 | 20 | 0.0018% |
| 1920 | #1,875 | 19 | 0.0018% |
| 1919 | #1,683 | 21 | 0.0021% |
| 1918 | #1,701 | 21 | 0.0021% |
| 1917 | #1,974 | 16 | 0.0017% |
| 1916 | #1,636 | 20 | 0.0022% |
| 1915 | #2,281 | 12 | 0.0014% |
| 1914 | #1,479 | 18 | 0.0027% |
| 1913 | #1,787 | 11 | 0.0021% |
| 1912 | #1,861 | 9 | 0.0021% |
| 1911 | #1,513 | 7 | 0.0031% |
| 1904 | #1,045 | 7 | 0.0055% |
| 1903 | #1,280 | 5 | 0.0042% |
| 1900 | #1,283 | 6 | 0.0040% |
| 1898 | #1,270 | 5 | 0.0041% |
| 1897 | #1,040 | 6 | 0.0053% |
| 1892 | #852 | 8 | 0.0066% |
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 Samson Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are spiritually intense and can sting or charm. Your name brings love and new starts into life and attracts money. In business, you are the creator and promoter of original ideas and usually enjoy considerable financial success. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Samson's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Samson's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.