Samuel

Meaning: Name of God, also read as God has set or asked of God
Origin: Hebrew

Nicknames: Sam, Sammy, Sammie, Uel

Boy's name · #18 in the US (2025) · Comeback

Popularity over time

Samuel ranked #18 in 2025, with about 820,000 boys carrying it since 1880. It has now held the national top 100 for more than a century without a break.

Across the states

See where Samuel is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 51 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Samuel ranks in other countries and regions.

#2 in Slovakia (2025, through 10 Dec 2025) · #18 in Brazil (2025, through 23 Dec 2025, girls and boys combined) · #19 in Switzerland (2025) · #21 in Czechia (2025) · #22 in Austria (2025) · #23 in Estonia (2025) · #24 in Finland (Finnish-sp.) (2025) · #30 in Mexico (2024) · #30 in Canada (2025) · #34 in Ecuador (2025) · #35 in Finland (other-lang.) (2025) · #38 in Australia (NSW) (2025) and 19 more.

Famous Samuels

Samuel Beckett — Irish writer (1906–1989)
Samuel Johnson — English writer and polymath (1709–1784)
Samuel Taylor Coleridge — English poet, literary critic and philosopher (1773–1834)
Samuel L. Jackson — American actor (born 1948)
Samuel Finley Breese Morse — American inventor and painter (1791–1872)
Samuel Eto'o — Cameroonian footballer (born 1981)
Samuel Adams — Founding Father of the United States (1722–1803)
Samuel Alito — US Supreme Court justice since 2006 (born 1950)
Samuel Umtiti — French footballer (born 1993)
Samuel de Champlain — French explorer of North America (1574–1635)

In stories & tradition

Samuel — Biblical prophet and main figure of the First Book of Samuel
Samuel (Sam Winchester) — Supernatural (TV series)
Samuel (Sam Fisher) — Fictional character in the videogame and novel series "Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell"

What Samuels become

Among 8,796 notable people named Samuel:

Lawyers & judges appear 2.33× more often than among typical names — e.g. Samuel Alito, US Supreme Court justice since 2006 (born 1950).

Twin names

Popular twin pairings with Samuel include Benjamin and Daniel for boys, and Sophia for a girl.

Spellings & nicknames

About 420 boys a year are given Sam as their full name and 110 Sammy.

Similar names: Benjamin · Zachary · Jack · Joseph · Daniel · Isaac

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

About · Privacy Policy · Terms of Service