Hadassah
Hadassah was the 570th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 529 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 530th with 577 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 135 places. More babies were named Hadassah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning myrtle (Hebrew name of Esther) · Hebrew
Say it huh-DAH-suh /həˈdɑsə/
- Rank in 2025
- #570 girls, up 100 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 529girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2024577 babies
- Total since 1880
- 9,312babies recorded
What does the name Hadassah mean?
Hadassah is the Hebrew name of Queen Esther. The Book of Esther introduces her as "Hadassah, that is, Esther" (Esther 2:7), the orphaned cousin raised by Mordecai. Wiktionary derives Hadassah from the Hebrew word for myrtle, the fragrant shrub whose English name comes, through Latin myrtus, from Greek. Her other name, Esther, is of disputed origin: DMNES links it either with a Persian word for star or with the goddess Ishtar. In the US, Hadassah has been used as a girls' name since the 1910s.
הֲדַסָּה (Biblical Hebrew, “myrtle”)
How sure is this? Probable. The 'myrtle' meaning comes from the Hebrew word hadas; the Bible itself does not explain the name.
Related names: Esther, Hadasa, Dassah.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean flower.
Sources for this meaning
- Esther 2:7, The JPS Tanakh: Gender-Sensitive Edition (via Sefaria), Jewish Publication Society / Sefaria
- Wiktionary, entry 'Hadassah' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Esther', DMNES (Durham University)
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th ed., entry 'myrtle' (etymology), HarperCollins / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Hadassah popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #570 | 529 |
| 2020 | #670 | 427 |
| 2010 | #829 | 324 |
| 2000 | #2,039 | 81 |
| 1990 | #3,745 | 28 |
| 1980 | #4,584 | 16 |
| 1970 | #4,857 | 11 |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | #4,949 | 6 |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | #3,819 | 7 |
| 1920 | #4,157 | 7 |
| 1910 | #2,565 | 5 |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Hadassah, counting every spelling?
Hadassah is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #472 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #570 for Hadassah on its own. Together these spellings went to 672 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hadassah | 529 | #570 | 2,501 |
| Hadassa | 121 | #1,695 | 531 |
| Hadasa | 22 | #5,615 | 107 |
| Hadasah | — | — | 36 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Hadassah?
529 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Hadassah (0.15 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Hadassah 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 16 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Hadassah.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Hadassah?
About 9,200 people born in the US named Hadassah are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 5 and 17. That makes Hadassah a young name: most people with it are children.
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.
Hadassah by state
How common Hadassah was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in New Jersey (4.1×), New York (2.0×), Indiana (1.9×), Pennsylvania (1.8×), Florida (1.7×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Louisiana, Illinois, Mississippi.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Hadassah: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Hadassah, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Hadassah · Sibling names for Hadassah
Questions about the name Hadassah
What does Hadassah mean?
Hadassah means “myrtle (Hebrew name of Esther)” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Hadassah?
Hadassah was the 570th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 529 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 530th with 577 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 135 places. More babies were named Hadassah in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Hadassah a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Hadassah in the US.
Where is Hadassah most popular?
In 2021–2025, Hadassah was most common in New Jersey (1.26 per 1,000 girls), followed by Montana and New York.