Animal names as first names in Hebrew

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The Hebrew Language has many first names which are animal names, some of which are derived from the Bible, while others are more modern.

Many characters in the Bible have animal names, most of them of smaller animals and herbivores. Several of these are still in Hebrew use (mainly female names), and have also passed into various other languages, mainly via Christianity.

  • Kalev/Caleb כלב, a variant of Kelev - Dog, is mainly used by non-Jews in the US, but hardly ever in Hebrew-speaking Israel

Other animal names of characters in the Bible did not become common names in later times, among them

At least since the first decade of the 18th century, animal names which had not been used as given names in Biblical times (most of them being the names of large predators) are evident among the East European Yiddish-speaking Jewish communities.

Typically, bi-lingual names were used, the animal name appearing first in Hebrew (the Holy Language for these communities) and then in Yiddish (the vernacular of daily life). (Most examples of people with such names given here are of rabbis - not necessarily because only rabbis had such names, but because rabbis are the most likely among Jews of that society to have Wikipedia pages.)


With the advent of Zionism, Hebrew became the spoken language and Yiddish was discarded (and until the 1950's, actively campaigned against). Accordingly, use of Yiddish names was discontinued and only the Hebrew ones retained in the Hebrew-speaking society built up in Ottoman- and British-ruled Palestine, from which Israel eventually emerged.

Traditional bilingual Yiddish-Hebrew names still occur occasionally among non-Zionist Ultra-Orthdox communities, both in Israel and at communities in Europe and North America.

In addition to the above animal names, several new ones have appeared in recent decades.

To the above-mentioned Tzvi צבי (deer) Israeli society added

  • Ayala איילה - Doe (female name)
  • Ofer עופר - Young Deer (male name)

Both words exist in the Bible as the names of the animals concerned, but became given names only in the Twentieth Century.

Also, the East European Aryeh אריה (Lion) is often shortened to Ari ארי.

Another newly established Israeli name is Talya טליה (Female Lamb). The name Tali טלי, a common female name in contemporary Israel, might be derived either from it or from Tal טל(Dew).

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