Given name
Erastus
“a loving man”
Erastus is used as a given name. One Greek interpretation is “a loving man.”
Original GreekΕραστος
Meaning & origin
What it means
One Greek interpretation is “a loving man.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Greek.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Erastus appears in Acts 19:22, 2 Timothy 4:20.
- Acts 19:22
- 2 Timothy 4:20
From biblical name research
Erastus through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 407
- 407 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 1916
- 23 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 5 in 1957. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 23 in 1916. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 166 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Erastus’s family of names
Erastus has a short form in Rastus. Erastus has a related form in Eraste. Erastus has a related form in Erastos.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Erastus
- Erastus CorningAmerican politician and businessman (1794-1872)
- Erastus RootAmerican politician (1773-1846)
- Erastus Salisbury FieldAmerican folk art painter (1805-1900)
- Erastus FairbanksAmerican politician (1792-1864)
- Erastus WellsAmerican politician (1823-1893)
- Erastus B. TylerUnion Army general1822–1891
- Erastus Brigham BigelowAmerican businessman1814–1879
- Erastus Dow PalmerAmerican artist (1817–1904)
- Erastus Otis HavenAmerican Methodist Episcopal bishop1820–1881
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Erastus, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Erasmus
“one who is dearly loved”
>99% boys
Argus
“one who is vigilant and watchful”
>99% boys
Eustace
“having an abundance of grapes”
>99% boys
Euclid
“an intelligent man”
>99% boys
Cletus
“one who has been summoned”
>99% boys
Isadore
“a gift from the goddess Isis”
80% boys · 20% girls
Cleophas
“having a vision of glory”
98% boys · 2% girls
Anatole
“born with the break of day”
>99% boys