Amos
Amos was the 730th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 364 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 105th; the most babies were born in 1922 (558). Over the last ten years it has moved down 4 places. More babies were named Amos in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning carried, borne (by God) (biblical) · Hebrew
Say it AY-mus /ˈeɪməs/
- Rank in 2025
- #730 boys, down 34 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 364boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1922558 babies
- Total since 1880
- 36,600babies recorded
What does the name Amos mean?
Amos is the name of the Hebrew prophet whose book opens, in Amos 1:1, by calling him a sheep breeder from Tekoa. DMNES and Wiktionary derive the name from a Hebrew root meaning to carry or to bear a burden; it is often explained as "carried by God," though the Bible does not say so. The Wycliffite Bible of the 1390s used Amos, and a 1569 Spanish Bible Amós, according to DMNES. US records show it from 1880.
עָמוֹס (Biblical Hebrew, “Amos”)ע־מ־ס (Biblical Hebrew, “to carry, bear a load”)
How sure is this? Probable. The root 'to carry' is agreed; 'carried by God' is an interpretation.
Related names: Amós.
See also: Hebrew names.
Sources for this meaning
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Amos', DMNES (Durham University)
- Amos 1:1, The JPS Tanakh: Gender-Sensitive Edition, with translators' note (via Sefaria), Jewish Publication Society / Sefaria
- Wiktionary, entry 'Amos' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Amos popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 64 since 1920.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #730 | 364 |
| 2020 | #696 | 366 |
| 2010 | #1,059 | 181 |
| 2000 | #907 | 171 |
| 1990 | #712 | 203 |
| 1980 | #531 | 262 |
| 1970 | #673 | 148 |
| 1960 | #490 | 261 |
| 1950 | #401 | 287 |
| 1940 | #341 | 278 |
| 1930 | #261 | 461 |
| 1920 | #246 | 493 |
| 1910 | #208 | 124 |
| 1900 | #168 | 125 |
| 1890 | #127 | 114 |
| 1880 | #105 | 128 |
How popular is Amos, counting every spelling?
Amos has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #714 for boys in 2025, against #730 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Amos?
364 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Amos (0.10 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Amos born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 23 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Amos.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Amos?
About 18,300 people born in the US named Amos are alive today, with a median age of 37; half are between 12 and 60. That makes Amos mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Amos by state
How common Amos was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Kentucky (3.2×), Pennsylvania (3.2×), Missouri (2.9×), Indiana (2.6×), Iowa (2.2×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Jersey, Nebraska, California.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Amos: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Amos, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Amos · Sibling names for Amos
Questions about the name Amos
What does Amos mean?
Amos means “carried, borne (by God) (biblical)” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Amos?
Amos was the 730th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 364 babies. Its best year was 1880, when it ranked 105th; the most babies were born in 1922 (558). Over the last ten years it has moved down 4 places. More babies were named Amos in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Amos a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Amos in the US.
Where is Amos most popular?
In 2021–2025, Amos was most common in Kentucky (0.79 per 1,000 boys), followed by Pennsylvania and Missouri.