Baby Names US
boys' name ★ peaked 2024

Obadiah

Meaning servant of Yahweh Gender Boy Rank 2025 #1,630 Trend ↑ Rising 21%

From Hebrew עובדיה (Ovadya, “servant of Yahweh”); comparable to Arabic عبد اللّٰه (ʕabd-allah, “servant of God”).

Rank 2025
#1,630
among boys · ↓216 vs 2024
Babies in 2025
104
named Obadiah · -21% vs 2024
How common
1 in 16,424
boys born in 2025
Peak year
2024
131 babies
All-time total
2,521
#2,856 all-time among boys
First recorded
1914
in Social Security records

Obadiah popularity over time

2,521 babies have been named Obadiah since 1914, according to official Social Security records. Switch measure to see births per year or the yearly rank.

Measure
Births per 1,000 babies of that sex, comparable across eras
0.030.050.080.118801900192019401960198020002020Peak 2024Boys

By decade. Change compares yearly averages, so the current partial decade is on equal footing. Best rank is the name's best yearly rank within the decade.

Decade Boys Per year Change Best rank
1880s – – – –
1890s – – – –
1900s – – – –
1910s 11 1 – #3,611
1920s 53 5 +382% #3,074
1930s 40 4 -25% #3,282
1940s 29 3 -28% #2,747
1950s 35 4 +21% #3,075
1960s 17 2 -51% #3,559
1970s 152 15 +794% #2,032
1980s 166 17 +9% #2,390
1990s 186 19 +12% #3,162
2000s 346 35 +86% #2,438
2010s 810 81 +134% #1,553
2020s (to 2025) 676 113 +39% #1,414

Where Obadiah is heading

A five-year projection from the recent trend in births per 1,000 boys (damped so it flattens over time), converted to babies at today's birth totals. The implied rank places that projection in the 2025 field. A projection, not a promise: real trends bend.

Year Projected babies Per 1,000 boys Implied rank
2026 107 0.06 outside top 500
2027 110 0.06 outside top 500
2028 113 0.07 outside top 500
2029 115 0.07 outside top 500
2030 117 0.07 outside top 500

Where Obadiah is most popular

Boys named Obadiah per 1,000 boys born in each state, 2021–2025. National average: 0.066 per 1,000. Strongest in Michigan, Missouri, and Indiana.

Vs national average
well below below near national above well above no data

All 50 states and DC, sorted by rate. Counts are boys named Obadiah born 2021–2025; the per-1,000 rate makes states of different sizes comparable, and the last column shows each state against the national average.

State Boys 2021–2025 Per 1,000 vs national
Michigan 32 0.156 +136%
Missouri 16 0.115 +75%
Indiana 18 0.112 +70%
Washington 14 0.086 +29%
Oregon 6 0.079 +20%
Arkansas 5 0.079 +20%
Ohio 17 0.064 ≈ national
Arizona 10 0.061 -8%
Texas 51 0.058 -12%
Minnesota 7 0.057 -14%
Florida 27 0.057 -14%
California 47 0.051 -22%
Georgia 13 0.051 -22%
Pennsylvania 12 0.045 -32%
North Carolina 11 0.043 -35%
Virginia 6 0.032 -52%
Alaska – – –
Alabama – – –
Colorado – – –
Connecticut – – –
District of Columbia – – –
Delaware – – –
Hawaii – – –
Iowa – – –
Idaho – – –
Illinois – – –
Kansas – – –
Kentucky – – –
Louisiana – – –
Massachusetts – – –
Maryland – – –
Maine – – –
Mississippi – – –
Montana – – –
North Dakota – – –
Nebraska – – –
New Hampshire – – –
New Jersey – – –
New Mexico – – –
Nevada – – –
New York – – –
Oklahoma – – –
Rhode Island – – –
South Carolina – – –
South Dakota – – –
Tennessee – – –
Utah – – –
Vermont – – –
Wisconsin – – –
West Virginia – – –
Wyoming – – –

State counts come from the Social Security Administration's state files, which omit any state-year with fewer than five babies of a name, so small states can undercount slightly.

The story of Obadiah

Obadiah is rare for boys in the United States, ranked #1,630 in 2025 with 104 babies given the name. It is currently rising compared with a decade ago.

Since 1914, 2,521 American babies have been named Obadiah. Its peak came in 2024, when 131 newborns received the name, the signature sound of the 2020s.

The chart above shows the full history: the popularity view (births per 1,000 babies) is the honest comparison across generations, since total US births have changed enormously since 1880. Switch to the rank view to see where Obadiah stood among all boys' names in any year, or use the compare tool to plot it against other names.

How old are people named Obadiah?

The median living Obadiah is about 11 years old; half are between 5 and 24. An estimated 2,400 people named Obadiah are alive in the United States today.

median 11 020406080100

Estimated from births per year and Social Security period life tables; an approximation of the living age distribution, by age in years.

Obadiah year by year

Every year since 2001, and five-year steps back to 1880. Rank is within each sex.

Year Boys Boys rank
2025 104 #1,630
2024 131 #1,414
2023 113 #1,554
2022 124 #1,464
2021 99 #1,676
2020 105 #1,566
2019 96 #1,673
2018 97 #1,661
2017 97 #1,639
2016 107 #1,553
2015 93 #1,689
2014 72 #1,993
2013 69 #2,005
2012 69 #2,027
2011 54 #2,367
2010 56 #2,313
2009 53 #2,438
2008 33 #3,403
2007 37 #3,119
2006 41 #2,812
2005 36 #2,944
2004 26 #3,608
2003 30 #3,173
2002 29 #3,164
2001 26 #3,386
2000 35 #2,662
1995 21 #3,274
1990 14 #4,123
1985 10 #4,257
1980 21 #2,424
1975 16 #2,608
1970 10 #3,213
1965 – –
1960 7 #3,559
1955 6 #3,774
1950 6 #3,585
1945 5 #3,643
1940 – –
1935 6 #3,540
1930 – –
1925 9 #3,074
1920 8 #3,410
1915 – –
1910 – –
1905 – –
1900 – –
1895 – –
1890 – –
1885 – –
1880 – –

Famous people named Obadiah

The most globally famous bearers of the name, ranked by fame across Wikipedia editions (Pantheon project, MIT).

  1. 1 Obadiah Obadiah Biblical prophet -587–-500 · Antiquity

Portraits from Wikipedia (Wikimedia Commons).

Frequently asked questions

Quick answers about Obadiah, drawn from the same Social Security data as the charts above.

How old is the average Obadiah?

The median living Obadiah is about 11 years old. Half of all living Obadiahs are between 5 and 24 years old.

How many people named Obadiah are alive today?

An estimated 2,400 people named Obadiah are alive in the United States, based on 2,521 recorded births and Social Security life tables.

What does the name Obadiah mean?

From Hebrew עובדיה (Ovadya, “servant of Yahweh”); comparable to Arabic عبد اللّٰه (ʕabd-allah, “servant of God”).

How popular is the name Obadiah in 2025?

Obadiah ranked #1,630 among boys' names in the United States in 2025, with 104 babies given the name, according to Social Security Administration data.

How many people are named Obadiah?

2,521 babies have been named Obadiah in the United States since 1914, based on Social Security card applications.

When was the name Obadiah most popular?

Obadiah peaked in 2024, when 131 newborns received the name.

Is Obadiah a boy or girl name?

Obadiah is overwhelmingly a boy's name: 100% of babies with the name.

Is the name Obadiah rising or falling?

Obadiah is on the rise, noticeably more popular now than a decade ago.

Will Obadiah become more popular?

Obadiah is trending upward. If the recent trend holds, we project roughly 117 boys named Obadiah in 2030, which would rank outside the top 500. Forecasts assume the current trend continues and become less certain further out.

Who are famous people named Obadiah?

Well-known people named Obadiah include Obadiah (religious figure).

Names like Obadiah

Names that sound and feel close to Obadiah: shared sounds, similar era, similar popularity. Each links to its full history.

Compare Obadiah with similar names → More names starting with O →