Entry № 6926 · Hebrew origin

Miriam Miriam — Meaning, Origin & Baby Name Popularity

/ MEER-ee-am /
Gender
Girl
Origin
Hebrew
Meaning
"Beloved (Moses' sister and prophet; Miriam Makeba)"
Syllables
2
First recorded
Ancient (Hebrew)

A name that means "beloved (moses' sister and prophet; miriam makeba)".

Miriam (מִרְיָם) is the original Hebrew form of Mary — uncertain etymology, possibly "beloved" or "bitter sea" or from the Egyptian mr ("love"). Miriam Yeung, Miriam Margolyes — among modern Miriams.

Beloved. First woman called a prophet in the Hebrew Bible; Mama Africa was first Black African Grammy winner.

The name in its native script.

מִרְיָם
Transliteration
Miryam
Pronunciation
/ ˈmɪər.i.əm /
Root
Grammatical form

Where Miriam stands.

Miriam does not currently appear in the US Social Security Administration's top 1,000 girls' names, so we don't publish a US rank or birth count for it. That says nothing about the name's standing elsewhere in the world — only that it sits outside the ranked US data we rely on.

Miriams before her.

Real people
Miriam Makeba
South African 'Mama Africa' singer.
1932 – 2008
Miriam Margolyes
British actress.
born 1941
In fiction
Miriam
Book of Exodus.

Names connected to Miriam.

The number behind Miriam.

9

The Giver

In Pythagorean numerology the letters of Miriam reduce to 9, The Giver. This is a traditional interpretive system, not a factual claim about the name.