Given name & surname
Amos
“borne by God”·“to carry; hardworking”
Amos is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “borne by God” and “to carry; hardworking” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original Hebrewעמוס
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “borne by God” and “to carry; hardworking” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Hebrew, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
From Biblical Hebrew עמוס (Amos, “to carry; a burden”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
The name appears in biblical tradition, giving it a longstanding religious and cultural context.
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Amos appears in Amos 7:14, Luke 3:25.
- Amos 7:14
- Luke 3:25
From biblical name research
Amos through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 36,600
- 36,536 boys · 64 girls
- Most popular year
- 1922
- 558 babies
- 2025
- 364
- #730 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +11%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 364 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 730 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 10.5% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 558 in 1922. In 2025, Pennsylvania had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (39). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 16,832 as a first name in 2020; 22,595 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Amos’s family of names
Amos has a related form in Ames. In French usage, Amos has a conventional equivalent in the Estonian form AAMOS. In French usage, Amos has a conventional equivalent in the Lithuanian form Amosas.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Amos has relatives in 16 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
11 related names in 16 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 5
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 2
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 9
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- עמוסequivalent
- Amósborrowing · Portuguese, Spanish
- AmosiSwahili
- 亞摩士cdo
- AmosasLithuanian
- ĀmosLatvian
- ʻAmosaHawaiian
- AamosFinnish, Estonian
Show 1 moreShow fewer
See also 3
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Amos
- Amos OzIsraeli writer, novelist, journalist and intellectual (1939–2018)
- Amos8th-century BCE Israelite biblical prophet, Christian saint, traditionally linked to the Book of Amos813 BC–739 BC
- Amos Bronson AlcottAmerican teacher, writer, philosopher, and reformer (1799-1888)
- Amos TverskyIsraeli psychologist (1937–1996)
- Amos TutuolaNigerian writer (1920-1997)
- Amos GitaiIsraeli film director and screenwriter (born 1950)
- Junior WellsAmerican Chicago blues vocalist, harmonica player, and recording artist (1934–1998)
- Amos SawyerLiberian politician (1945–2022)
- Danny ThomasAmerican actor, comedian, and humanitarian of Lebanese parentage (1912–1991)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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