Boy · Hebrew
Isaac
Say it: EYE-zik
Meaning
Hebrew Yitsḥaq, 'he laughs' or 'he will laugh', echoing the laughter of Abraham and Sarah in Genesis.
Certainscholars agree on this meaning.
Used by Jewish families throughout history and by Protestants after the Reformation.
Its wave through time
A revival, back after decades away
In the United States
- 299,071 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 2013, about 1 in 187 boys
- 7,066 babies in 2020
Through the ages
- The Biblical WorldAbout 1200 BC to AD 100
- The Colonial Americas1500 to 1800
- Victorian and Belle Époque1837 to 1914
- The Modern Age1880 to today
Used by
HebrewEarly ChristianEnglishAmericanFrenchSpanishItalianPortugueseGermanPolish
The family of the name
Other spellings: Izaak
| French | Isaac |
|---|---|
| Spanish | Isaac |
| Italian | Isacco |
| Portuguese | Isaque |
| German | Isaak |
| Polish | Izaak |
| Russian | Isaak |
| Hebrew | Yitzhak |
Famous bearers
- Isaac, son of Abraham and Sarah
- Isaac Newton, English physicist
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- The Hebrew Bible and the New Testament
- Puritan church and town records of England and New England
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.