Given name & surname
Erasmus
“one who is dearly loved”
Erasmus is used as a given name and a surname. One Greek interpretation is “one who is dearly loved.”
Original GreekΈρασμος
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “one who is dearly loved.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
How it developed
The name is derived from eran, meaning “to love”.
The story
Its Christian associations include Saint Erasmus, a bishop of Formiae in Campania, martyred under Diocletian.
Erasmus through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 117
- 117 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1921
- 8 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for boys is 6 in 2021. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 8 in 1921. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 211 as a first name in 2020; 391 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.
Erasmus’s family of names
In Swedish usage, Erasmus has a short form in Rasmus. In Latin usage, Erasmus has a later derivative in Rose. In English usage, Erasmus has a conventional equivalent in the Spanish form Erasmo.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Erasmus has relatives in 12 languages. Lines run from its Ancient Greek roots to each of them.
12 related names in 12 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 7
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 10
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
- ΈρασμοςGreek
- Rosederivative · English
- Asmoderivative · Finnish
- TelmoSpanish
- Érasseequivalent
- Erazmequivalent
- Asmusderivative · Danish
- ElmCatalan
Show 2 moreShow fewer
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Erasmus
- Erasmus DarwinEnglish physician (1731-1802)
- Rasmus BartholinDanish scientist, physician and grammarian (1625-1698)
- Erasmus ReinholdGerman astronomer and mathematician1511–1553
- Erasmus Quellinus the YoungerFlemish painter (1607-1678)
- Erasmus AlberusGerman humanist, reformer and poet (ca 1500-1533)
- Erasmus Quellinus the ElderFlemish sculptor (1580-1640)
- Erasmus FinxGerman polymath1627–1694
- Erasmus Desiderius WanderaUgandan theologian and catholic bishop (1930–2022)
- Erasmus D. KeyesBusinessman, banker, and military general (1810-1895)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Erasmus, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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