Seth
Seth was the 581st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 505 babies. Its best year was 2000, when it ranked 63rd with 6,717 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 311 places. More babies were named Seth in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Meaning appointed, granted (biblical) · Hebrew
Say it SETH /sɛθ/
- Rank in 2025
- #581 boys, down 149 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 505boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20006,717 babies
- Total since 1880
- 166,288babies recorded
What does the name Seth mean?
Seth is the third son of Adam and Eve in Genesis. In Genesis 4:25 Eve names him, saying God has "provided" (or "established") another child for her in place of Abel. The JPS translators note that the Hebrew verb shath is a play on the name Shet. That wordplay is why Seth is usually glossed "appointed" or "placed." The name passed into English through Greek and Latin Bibles. It is unrelated to the Egyptian god Set, also spelled Seth in English.
שֵׁת (Biblical Hebrew, “Seth (Shet)”)shath (Biblical Hebrew, “to put, appoint, provide”)
How sure is this? Probable. 'Appointed/granted' is the Bible's own wordplay explanation, not an independent etymology.
Related names: Shet.
See also: Hebrew names.
Sources for this meaning
- Genesis 4:25, The JPS Tanakh: Gender-Sensitive Edition, with translators' note (via Sefaria), Jewish Publication Society / Sefaria
- Wiktionary, entry 'Seth' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wikipedia, 'Seth (given name)', Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts only)
Seth popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 495 since 1967.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #581 | 505 |
| 2020 | #432 | 688 |
| 2010 | #164 | 2,383 |
| 2000 | #63 | 6,717 |
| 1990 | #102 | 3,561 |
| 1980 | #99 | 3,050 |
| 1970 | #269 | 795 |
| 1960 | #436 | 340 |
| 1950 | #594 | 132 |
| 1940 | #838 | 57 |
| 1930 | #908 | 55 |
| 1920 | #603 | 109 |
| 1910 | #815 | 15 |
| 1900 | #442 | 27 |
| 1890 | #507 | 15 |
| 1880 | #349 | 25 |
How popular is Seth, counting every spelling?
Seth has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #573 for boys in 2025, against #581 on the official list.
How many kids will share the name Seth?
505 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Seth (0.14 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Seth 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 17 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Seth.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Seth?
About 155,400 people born in the US named Seth are alive today, with a median age of 29; half are between 22 and 40. That makes Seth mostly worn by children and young adults.
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.
Seth by state
How common Seth was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Utah (2.4×), Indiana (2.3×), Kentucky (1.8×), Arkansas (1.7×), Ohio (1.6×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Connecticut, New Mexico, West Virginia.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Seth: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Seth, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Seth · Sibling names for Seth
Questions about the name Seth
What does Seth mean?
Seth means “appointed, granted (biblical)” (Hebrew origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Seth?
Seth was the 581st most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 505 babies. Its best year was 2000, when it ranked 63rd with 6,717 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 311 places. More babies were named Seth in the 2000s than in any other decade.
Is Seth a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Seth in the US.
Where is Seth most popular?
In 2021–2025, Seth was most common in Alaska (1.51 per 1,000 boys), followed by Utah and Indiana.