Name of the Week

 

 
A quirky Biblical name that manages to be both
unusual and unobtrusive at the same time.

 

Origin:

From the Hebrew name עֶזְרָא (Ezra); the name of an Israelite priest in the Old Testament. According to the Book of Ezra, so named after the priest himself, Ezra helped to restore the Jewish community and was integral to the reestablishment of Mosaic Law.  The name itself is a variant of the Hebrew עֶזְרָה (ezrah) "help, helper, assistance." It is interesting to note that the Old Testament (Ezra 7:3) records that Ezra's paternal grandfather bore the name Azariah (Azaryahu) meaning "God has helped." Both names ultimately derive from the Hebrew verb עָזַר (azar) "to help, succour" leading some to speculate that Ezra may have started life as a shortened form of Azariah. The name was translated as Ἔσδρας (Esdras) in Greek, later in Latin also, and that name is still sometimes used as an alternative name of the biblical book. The Arabicized form of the name, Uzayr or Uzair, is also mentioned in the Qur'an.

Usage:

Early examples of Ezra in use as a name in Britain are not easy to come by. It has never been popular, but its biblical routes have meant it has had some measure of sustained usage. Think of other never-been-highly-popular biblical names, such as Ezekiel or Ebenezer, and Ezra's usage falls neatly within that bracket.  Examples of Ezra in in baptism first start appearing in England the the late 16th century — it should, of course, be noted that very few baptism records exist before that time — and examples increase throughout the 17th century. Such examples are mostly confined to England, as the name was not much used in either Wales or Scotland. Ezra fared better on the other side of the pond, however, and many of the most famous examples of the name hail from America. The 1841 UK census records 944 males named Ezra (97% living in England, 3% in Wales). The number had risen to 1,205 in 1861 (96% living in England, 3% in Wales, 0.2% in Scotland); 2,337 in 1881; and 2,516 in 1900 (96.8% in England, 2.8% in Wales, 0.4% in Scotland). Birth records show that usage of the name in England during the Victorian era was consistent, and even reached a peak mid-century: 1840: 54 births registered. 1850: 78 births registered. 1860: 81 births registered. 1870: 85 births registered. 1880: 78 births registered. 1890: 57 births registered. 1900: 35 births registered. In the 20th century the usage of Ezra steadily began to decline, and by the 1950s the name was averaging only 10 births per year. From 1996—2004 Ezra had a birth count of between 19 and 41 in England and Wales. The change came in 2005 when it ranked #605 (44 births) and steadily increased over the subsequent years to #406 (92 births) in 2010. In 2011 it ranked #441 with 86 births. Occasionally, the name has been used for girls, but the usage is inconsistent and no more than 10 have been registered in any given year. Two boys were registered with the name Ezra in Scotland in 2009; one in 2010 and two in 2011.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Ezra Ames (1768–1836), popular American portrait painter. * Ezra Horton (1861–1939), English footballer for West Bromwich. * Ezra Pound (1885–1972), influential American poet. * Ezra Jack Keats (1916–1983), American children's literature author and illustrator. Contemporary: * Ezra Laderman (b.1924), American classical composer. Other: * Ezra, is the name of a type of butterfly (thessalia genus).

Variants:

Esdras (Biblical Greek), Uzair (Arabic)

Pronunciation:

EZ-rə  [key]

Possible Diminutives:

Ez, Ezzy, Rez, Zee

Sibling Names:

Dinah     Sadie     Lila     Sarai     Phoebe     Stella  Levi     Joah    Gideon     Amos     Seth     Rudy

Name Lists:

Vintage Names   Quirky Biblical Names   Short and Sweet

 

If you like Ezra you may also like:   Jonas, Enzo, Elijah, Micah, Eli, Judah, Elias, Ezekiel, Isaac, Erasmus

 

Thanks to Lydie for requesting Ezra as this week's NotW.