Origin, Meaning, And History Of Joseph
Joseph is a popular masculine name derived from the Hebrew name Yosef meaning ‘God will increase,’ ‘He will add’ or ‘praise.’ Joseph and Josef are commonly used in French, English, and to a certain degree in German. Recent Scandinavian languages employ a different spelling variation of this name. It is also known as Jose in Spanish and Portuguese. In Arabic, it is spelled as Yusuf as mentioned in the Quran, while Yousef is the variant in Persian.
Joseph has remained one of the most popular names in the United States that has many sought-after variants in many countries. For example, it is popularly known as Yossef or Yossi in Israel, while it is called Giuseppe in Italy. Joseph was the second most common male name for Jews living in Palestine during the first century A.D.
In the Old Testament, Joseph is a prominent figure that appears in the Book of Genesis as the eldest son of Rachel and Jacob. He is considered the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Joseph. In the New Testament, Joseph is the husband of Mary and the father of Jesus from Nazareth. According to Christianity, he is the patron of workers, married couples, people in exile, and the sick and dying.
Jo, Joe, Jody, Joey, Josey, Sepp, Jupp, and Seppel are the diminutives, while Josepha, Joséphine, Josèphe, and Josée are the feminine forms of Joseph. Some popular variants in different languages and cultures include Jozef, Zef, Youcef, Ioseph, Jusuf, Yusup, Jose, Josephus, Giuseppe, Giusi, and Josip.
In fiction, Joseph Joestar is a protagonist from the popular Japanese manga series JoJo’s Bizarre Adventure created by Hirohiko Araki. He is also portrayed as the main character of the second storyline named Battle Tendency. Finally, Joseph Seed is a character from the famous first-person shooter video game franchise Far Cry.
Joseph
How To Pronounce Joseph?
Famous People With The Name Joseph
- Joseph Robinette Biden Jr./ Joe BidenAmerican politician, the 46th president of the US
- Joseph Roland BarberaAmerican animator, director, producer, and cartoon artist, co-founded the animation studio and production company “Hanna-Barbera”
- Joseph ConradPolish-British novelist and short story writer, known for his 1899 novel “Heart of Darkness”
- Joseph Leonard Gordon-LevittAmerican actor, known for his roles in “500 Days of Summer”, “50/50,” and “The Trial of the Chicago 7”
- Michael Joseph JacksonAmerican singer, songwriter, and dancer, dubbed the “King of Pop”
Joseph On The Popularity Chart
We all know that Joseph is one of the popular names around. Let us see how it fared over the years from the data provided by the Social Security Administration.
Popularity Over Time
Joseph has been one of the popular names but its usage has been declining since 2004. In 2021, 8067 babies per million shared this title.
Source: Social Security AdministrationRank Over Time
Going by the chart, the ranking of Joseph peaked in the early 1980s before gradually declining over the years. As of 2021, it is ranked at 17572.
Source: Social Security AdministrationNames With Similar Sound As Joseph
If you want to consider a different name that is similar sounding in nature to Joseph, have a look at the suggestions provided.
Popular Sibling Names For Joseph
Names With Same Meaning As Joseph
As a popular name for centuries, there are many variations of Joseph that have the same meaning. Here are a few such examples.
Infographic: Know The Name’s Personality As Per Numerology
Illustration: Momjunction Design Team
Get high-quality PDF version by clicking below.
Download Infographic
How To Communicate The Name In Other Languages
In Nautical Flags
joseph
In Sign Language
joseph
In Braille Alphabet
joseph
In Morse Code
joseph
Name Numerology For Joseph
