Name of the Week: Asa

Origin:

Asa is the name of a Biblical king of Judah in the Old Testament, the father of Jehoshaphat. The meaning isn't entirely clear, but it is thought to most likely derive from the Hebrew אָסָא meaning "healer, doctor." The Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew and English Lexicon suggests that it was perhaps an "apocopatic [endings cut short] theophoric name"* in the same vein as Raphael meaning "healer of God." Asa also appears as a separate name in other languages: Asa is a Welsh variant of Saint Asaph's name. The name Asaph is a Biblical Hebrew name meaning "collector".  Åsa is a Scandinavian name which serves as a short form of feminine names beginning As-, ultimately derived from the Old Norse element áss "god". Asa is an Igbo Nigerian name (usually feminine) with the meaning "beautiful”. In Sanskrit, Asa means "hope, purpose, intention, wish". It also means "hope" in Punjabi, Indonesian and Filipino.

Usage:

Like many Old Testament names, Asa began to be used in Britain in the 16th century, though it never saw the same success as the likes of Abraham, Joshua or Josiah. Also like several other obscure Biblical names, Asa had much more usage in America (compare Ezra) than it ever had in Britain. Births for Asa in the England and Wales Birth Index: 1840s: 1850s: 1860s: 1870s: 1880s: 1890s: 1900s: 1910s: 1920s: 1930s: 1940s: 1950s: 1960s: 1970s: 87 births 121 births 202 births 225 births 156 births 115 births 71 births 40 births 29 births 11 births 8 births 10 births 13 births 458 births Asa was just within top 250 in 1860 and 1880 and around the #300 mark in the rest of the second half of the 19th century. It became extremely rare by the mid-20th century, seeing a small revival in the 1970s.  Since 1996, Asa has had pretty consistent use around the #600 mark with an average of 40 births per year.  It peaked at #608 in 2016 with 59 births. In this year, it was most common in the North West (#394) and West Midlands (#400). In 2018, Asa ranked #665 with 52 births.  In Scotland, Asa has only ranked in 25 years out of 44 from 1974 to 2018 with no more than 4 births in any given year.  In 2017, it ranked #915 with 2 births but was unranked in 2018.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Asa Wentworth Jr. (1797-1882), American businessman and politician. * Asa Lovejoy (1808–1882), American businessman and politician. * Asa Gray (1810–1888), American botanist. * Asa Biggs (1811–1878), American politician. * Asa C. Matthews (1833–1908), American lawyer, judge and politician. * Asa S. Bushnell (1834–1904), American politician, 40th Governor of Ohio. * Asa Griggs Candler (1851–1929), founder of the Coca-Cola company. * Asa Yoelson (1886–1950), the real name of singer Al Jolson. * Asa Briggs (1921–2016), British historian. Contemporary: * Asa Kasher (born 1940), Israeli philosopher and linguist. * Asa Hartford (born 1950), Scottish football player and coach. * Asa Andrew (born 1971), American doctor and radio host. * Aṣa (born 1982), Nigerian-French female singer-songwriter. * Asa Hall (born 1986), English footballer. * Asa Butterfield (born 1997), British actor. Literature and Other Media: * Asa Hawks, a character in the novel Wise Blood (1952) by Flannery O'Connor and the film of the same name.

Variants:

Asah

Pronunciation:

AY-sə [key]

Possible longer forms:

Asaph, Azariah, Augustus

Sibling Names:

Dinah     Rhea     Noa     Roma     Tessa     Dua      Micah     Silas     Rudy     Odin     Judah     Amos

Name Lists:

Quirky Biblical Names

 

If you like Asa you may also like:   Ezra, Arno, Linus, Ivo, Boaz, Job, Levi, Eben, Joah, Sol

Thanks to Sosie for requesting this name.