Abraham

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Abraham

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Abraham is the English form of a Hebrew name. It means “Father of Many.”

History:
Abraham is another example of an Old Testament name used in Europe only by Jewish families until the Reformation. After which, the name was taken up by 17th century Puritans (including the American colonists), as well as into Belgium and Holland (as Bram, or Abram).
Abraham was popular in the United States (originally due to Puritan influence, and then due to martyred 16th president Abraham Lincoln) until the turn of the century, when it declined considerably. The name has been rather rare in the 20th century, but is slowly becoming more popular.

Pronunciation: abe-rah-ham.

Diminutives:
English: Abe.
Hebrew: Aram.
Irish: Bram.

Alternates: Abarron, Abiram, Abramo, Avidor, Avraham, Avrahom.
Arabic: Braheem, Ibrahim, Inrahim.
Irish: Abracham.
Latin: Abrahamus.
Spanish: Abrahán.
Spanish (Old): Abraam.
Yiddish: Avrom.

See also: Abe.

Famous Bearers:
Artists and Authors:
Abraham ben Meir ibn Ezra (1092-1167)
Spanish Jewish poet.
Abraham Fraunce (1558-1633)
English poet.
Abraham Bloemaert (1564-1651)
Dutch painter.
Abraham Bosse (1602-1676)
French painter.
Abraham Cowley (1618-1667)
English poet.
Abraham Mignon (1640-1679)
German painter.
Abraham Mapu (1808-1867)
Russian novelist who wrote in Hebrew.
Ibrahim Sinasi (1826-1871)
Turkish author.
Abraham Goldfaden (1840-1908)
Yiddish playwright.
Bram Stoker (1847-1912)
Irish author.
Abraham Zevi Idelsohn (1882-1938)
Russian Jewish composer.
Abraham Shlonsky (Avraham Shlonski) (1900-1973)
Israeli poet.
Abraham Sutzkever (1913-)
Yiddish-language poet.

Educators, Scholars, and Social Workers:
Ibrahim an-Nazzam (775-845)
Muslim theologian.
Abraham bar Hiyya (1065-1136)
Spanish Jewish philosopher.
Abraham ben David Halevi ibn Daud (1110-1180)
Spanish Jewish historian.
Abraham Geiger (1810-1874)
German Jewish theologian.
Abraham Kuyper (1837-1920)
Dutch theologian.
Abraham Cahan (1860-1951)
American journalist.
Abraham Flexner (1866-1959)
American educator.
Abraham Heschel (1907-1972)
Russian-American Jewish theologian.
Abraham Isaac Katsh (1908-1998)
Polish-American educator.

Miscellaneous:
Abraham Ortelius (1527-1598)
Flemish cartographer.
Abraham de Fabert (1599-1662)
French military leader.
Abraham Duquesne, Marquis du Quesnne (1610-1688)
French naval officer.
Abraham Roentgen (1711-1793)
German furniture maker.
Abraham-Louis Bréguet (1747-1823)
French watchmaker.
Ibrahim Pasha (1789-1848)
Ottoman general.

Political Figures:
Ibrahim Pasa (1493-1536)
Ottoman grand vizier.
Ibrahim Müteferrika (1670-1745)
Ottoman diplomat.
Abraham Clark (1726-1794)
American patriot. A signer of the Declaration of Independence.
Abraham Lincoln (1809-1865)
16th president of the United States.
Ibrahim Datuk Tan Malaka (1894-1949)
Indonesian communist leader.
Abraham A. Ribicoff (1910-1998)
Governor of Connecticutt.
Ibrahim Baré Maïnassara (1949-1999)
Nigerois polticial leader.

Religious Figures:
Abraham
Biblical patriarch.

Royalty:
Ibrahim Lodi (?-1526)
Afghan sultan.
Ibrahim (1615-1648)
Ottoman sultan.

Scientists:
Abraham Moivre (1667-1754)
French mathematician.
Abraham Trembley (1710-1784)
Swiss naturalist.
Abraham Werner (1750-1817)
German geologist.
Abraham Jacobi (1830-1919)
German-American physician.
Abraham Maslow (1908-1970)
American psychologist.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
0.035 % named Abraham
0.006 % named Abe

Popularity of Abraham:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1800: 29th most popular.
1850: 80th most popular.
1875: 108th most popular.
1900-1910: 144th most popular.
1910-1920: 158th most popular.
1920-1930: 261st most popular.
1930-1940: 350th most popular.
1940-1950: 408th most popular.
1950-1960: 410th most popular.
1960-1970: 503rd most popular.
1970-1980: 347th most popular.
1980-1990: 274th most popular.
1990: 233rd most popular.
1991: 232nd most popular.
1992: 235th most popular.
1993: 231st most popular.
1994: 228th most popular.
1995: 219th most popular.
1996: 221st most popular.
1997: 215th most popular.
1998: 214th most popular.
1999: 221st most popular.
2000: 214th most popular.
2001: 204th most popular.
2002: 204th most popular.
2003: 196th most popular.

Popularity of Ibrahim:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1900-1990: N/A
1990: 732nd most popular.
1991: 807th most popular.
1992: 857th most popular.
1993: 738th most popular.
1994: 761st most popular.
1995: 770th most popular.
1996: 671st most popular.
1997: 710th most popular.
1998: 803rd most popular.
1999: 714th most popular.
2000: 673rd most popular.
2001: 669th most popular.
2002: 644th most popular.
2003: 603rd most popular.