Why are some Biblical names widely popular whilst others are rarely used?

[DreamBeloe]

DH and I are leaning toward the name Abel for our baby, and some family members have been surprised by our choice. This made me start thinking about how certain Biblical names are disproportionately used more than others (in the UK). Some names also seem to generally be limited to Jewish communities or very insular Christian sects because the broader public does not use them. For example, John, Joseph, Ezra, and Noah are infinitely more popular than Moses, Ezekiel, Abel, and Micah. For the girls, Hadassah, Keziah, and Miriam are rarely used in comparison to Naomi, Eve, and Lydia. (It was harder to think of examples for girls, but they are there!) I understand that certain Biblical names are just too unusual to be used or have a negative association, but I'm referring to names that aren't too bizarre and have at least a somewhat positive or neutral association. I think a lot of these names (Moses, Abel, Micah, Keziah, etc.) have the potential to be popular but just aren't for some reason. Why is this?

i like biblical names. very popular in the gypsy community.

ps. abel is a lovely name

Ignore them. Lots of people got upset when I called my child Judas but most people just shortened it to Jude so it's never been an issue.

I've often wondered this myself. Many of the uncommon Biblical names are nicer than the overused Biblical names. It boggles the mind.

People raised eyebrows when I named my son Herod, but he goes by Hot Rod.

I think a lot of it is trying to avoid people saying/spelling it wrong. My youngest has a biblical name dh loved but i was concerned that people would pronounce it wrong. They do pronounce it wrong and it's annoying.

Because some names have moved on and aren’t associated as being biblical - they are just name that appearing in the bible. They were normal names before and stay normal names. Some will come in and out of fashion same as any other names. Take Lydia, very few people will think of that as a name from the bible.

Then there are names that have fallen out of common use so the only association is with the bible. So Moses, Abel etc… stand out and it is almost a declaration of the parents faith. As the number of Christians decreases the less these names will be used.

All of the unpopular names are very popular with African heritage families that I know of

Often I think it depends on the story associated with the name.

Hassasah’s story is fairly violent which might explain it but other versions of the name (Esther and Myrtle) are better known in the UK at least.

I do know a Keziah but only one. Job’s other daughter Jemima has done better in name popularity but poor Keren- Happuch doesn't get a look in!

Abel is a nice name, easy to spell, the family will get used to it.

The girls names you say are rare I would associate more with Islam as they sound Arabic

Well Zebediah is not as nice as Noah is it . Just too awkward . I do like Abel though . What reason do they give ?

I agree about Lydia. Also: Rachel, Rebecca, Sarah.

Abel is a lovely name, I’ve seen it quite a lot recently.
I think some of the bible names are just nicer than others. Ezekiel and Ezra are imo not nice at all but I do like Jonah and Noah its personal taste.

I'd say Noah and Ezra have only become mainstream in the last 10 to 15 years. Probably because people were looking for more unusual biblical names.

I love Jezebel but there's no way that will become mainstream.

I've often wondered this. I guess in some cases it's to do with the character of the person. I think we anglicise some names too. Others are just unwieldy. I can't imagine shouting for little Nebuchadnezzar to come in for his tea.

Isn't it just the straightforward reason that some of the scriptures paint some of the people more favourably than others?

So Abel is less common because the story of Cain and Abel is not a very nice one. Judas betrayed Christ. Names like Jezebel and Herod are unpopular for similar reasons. Matthew, Mark, Luke and John were the four evangelists and are viewed in a positive light. Mary has obviously been popular. I think that's all it is - probably less obvious now because people don't know the scriptures as well.

Yes, we cross posted. Nobody will really want to call their baby Pontius.

I wonder if it might actually be the other way round.

When I was in school the only Noahs and Hannahs came from extremely religious families.

These days they are both more common and don’t have the same connotations at all.

I wonder as less people in the UK attend organised religion then it might open up more people to use less common Biblical names.

I don’t mean to cause offence OP, but why would you want to name your son after the first murder victim?

I think that is why it hasn't been popular OP. Strictly speaking, Cain was the bad guy, but the general association still isn't great.

Exactly. Abel’s a fine enough name and was a good person, but it’s best to check out the stories of those in the Bible first!

Biblically speaking Abel was also a representation of innocence and virtue.

Perhaps, but there is surely still a negative association for most people?

Keziah was on the shortlist for my youngest, along with Atarah, Solomon, Ezra, Malachi and I forget what else! But we have both Traveller and Jewish heritage so they were deliberate choices.

Some of the names you mention were used many years ago. There's certainly quite a few Ezekiels and Abels mentioned in Victorian records for example. And Miriam, although not common, was definitely on the radar when I was growing up in the 1960's. A relative of mine born in 1910 was called Tiras, which is a biblical name but I bet hardly anyone has heard of it these days. It's only fairly recently that the likes of Noah and Ezra have become popular. Twenty years ago people would think you were odd if you'd suggested those names. So I think once that tranche of names becomes ridiculously over used (if they aren't already), then parents will pick up on Moses and Micah etc. It will be interesting to see.