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Joshua

Quick answerJoshua derives from the Hebrew name Yehoshua (יְהוֹשׁוּעַ), meaning "God is salvation" or "God saves," combining the elements "Yah" (God) and "shua" (salvation).

English · Boy · 2 syllables

J
Top 100

Popularity & facts

Relative popularity index, 2010–2025
GenderBoy
US Rank#66
TrendStable
Peak year1989
Syllables2
OriginEnglish
LanguageEnglish
CultureEnglish, Biblical
ReligionJudaism, Christianity, Islam
Letters6
Numerology2 Chaldean 5
Global rank#48

Popularity over time

Popularity index
Hover the line to see any year. 100 = most popular.

Historical popularity from 1880–2025 · US Social Security Administration data

About the name Joshua

Joshua derives from the Hebrew name Yehoshua (יְהוֹשׁוּעַ), meaning "God is salvation" or "God saves," combining the elements "Yah" (God) and "shua" (salvation).

Cross-referenced with Wikidata/Wikipedia. AI-assisted, community-reviewable. Suggest an improvement.

Etymology

Joshua derives from the Hebrew name Yehoshua (יְהוֹשׁוּעַ), meaning "God is salvation" or "God saves," combining the elements "Yah" (God) and "shua" (salvation). The name is primarily used in Jewish, Christian, and Muslim traditions, with significant historical prominence as the name of Moses' successor who led the Israelites into Canaan in biblical tradition.

Joshua currently ranks #66 in the United States as a boy's name. It reached its peak popularity around 1989.

Variants & nicknames

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Sibling name ideas

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Phonetic match, not just spelling
Jose
Unisex Spanish (Americanized)

"José means "God will increase" and derives from the Hebrew name Yosef (יוֹסֵף), which combines "Yah" (God) and "asaf" (to…"

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Juha
Boy Finnish

"Juha is a Finnish form of the name Juhana, which derives from the Hebrew name Yohanan (יוֹחָנָן), meaning "God is…"

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Jack
Unisex English

"The name Jack is a diminutive form of John, derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan (יוֹחָנָן), meaning "God is gracious"…"

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Joao
Boy Portuguese

"João means "God is gracious" and derives from the Hebrew name Yochanan, filtered through Latin (Joannes) and Portuguese phonetic adaptation."

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Jesse
Unisex English

"Jesse derives from the Hebrew name Yishai (יִשַׁי), meaning "gift" or "wealthy," and entered English through biblical and ecclesiastical tradition."

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Jukka
Boy Finnish

"Jukka is a Finnish given name derived from the Hebrew name Yochanan, meaning "God is gracious" through the Greek form…"

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Jessica
Unisex English

"Jessica is derived from the Hebrew name Yiskah, meaning "God beholds" or "one who beholds," with the "-ica" suffix added…"

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Jussi
Boy Finnish

"Jussi is the Finnish diminutive form of Jooseppi (Joseph), derived from the Hebrew name Yosef meaning "God will increase." The…"

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Juho
Unisex Finnish

"Juho is a Finnish form of the name Judah, derived from the Hebrew root meaning "praised" or "thanked." It comes…"

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Jaakko
Boy Finnish

"Jaakko means "he who supplants" or "God will protect," derived from the Hebrew name Jacob (Ya'akov) through Greek and Latin…"

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Jooa
Unisex Finnish

"The given name 'Jooa' is derived from the Arabic name 'Jawwad' or 'Jawwah', which means 'generous' or 'bountiful', and is…"

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Josiah
Unisex Biblical

"Josiah derives from the Hebrew name Yoshiyahu, composed of the elements "Yah" (God) and "shiyah" (to save), meaning "God supports"…"

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