Given name & surname · also Persian
Mordecai
“devotee of the god Marduk”·“a servant of Marduk, a Babylonian god”
Mordecai is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “devotee of the god Marduk” (Persian) and “a servant of Marduk, a Babylonian god” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original Hebrewמרדכי
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “devotee of the god Marduk” (Persian) and “a servant of Marduk, a Babylonian god” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Persian.
The story
The name appears in biblical tradition, giving it a longstanding religious and cultural context.
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Mordecai appears in Esther 2:5, Esther 10:2, Esther 9:20.
- Esther 2:5
- Esther 10:2
- Esther 9:20
From biblical name research
Mordecai through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,650
- 1,650 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2022
- 99 babies
- 2025
- 70
- #2,100 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +13%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 70 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 2,100 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 12.6% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (7). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 962 as a first name in 2020; 856 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.
Mordecai’s family of names
Mordecai has an affectionate form in Motke. In English usage, Mordecai has a related form in Mordechai. Mordecai has a related form in Mordechai.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Mordecai has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
2 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 9
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Mordechaivariant · English
- Mordekaivariant
- Morduckaivariant
- Mordukaivariant
- Morduchaivariant
- Morducaivariant
- Mordeckaivariant
- Motkepet form
Show 1 moreShow fewer
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 21
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Mordecai
- Mordechai VanunuIsraeli activistborn 1954
- Mordecai RichlerCanadian writer (1931–2001)
- Mordecai KaplanLithuanian American rabbi (1881-1983)
- Mordechai EliyahuChief Rabbi of Israel (1983–1993)1929–2010
- Chaim RumkowskiHead of Judenrat in Lodz Ghetto.1877–1944
- Mordechai GebirtigYiddish writer (1877–1942)
- Mordehai MilgromIsraeli physicistborn 1946
- Mordecai Cubitt CookeEnglish botanist and mycologist (1825–1914)
- Mordechai HodIsraeli military officer1926–2003
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Appears in
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