Given name & surname
Ruth
“compassion”·“a beloved companion”
Ruth is used as a given name and a surname. Interpretations include “compassion” and “a beloved companion” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original Hebrewרות
Meaning & origin
What it means
Interpretations include “compassion” and “a beloved companion” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Where it comes from
A possible origin is Hebrew, although the derivation remains uncertain.
How it developed
In Swedish usage, Ruth developed from רות.
The story
The name has a place in biblical naming traditions.
In the Bible
In the Bible, the name Ruth appears in Ruth 4:10, Deuteronomy 25:5, Matthew 1:5.
- Ruth 4:10
- Deuteronomy 25:5
- Matthew 1:5
From biblical name research
Ruth through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 838,901
- 2,779 boys · 836,122 girls
- Most popular year
- 1920
- 26,156 babies
- 2025
- 1,781
- #173 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +35%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 1,781 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 173 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 34.8% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 26,102 in 1920. In 2025, Texas had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (167). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 285,959 as a first name in 2020; 14,156 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.
Ruth’s family of names
In English usage, Ruth has a diminutive in Ruthie. Ruth shares a linguistic root with Rut. Ruth has a related form in Ruthann.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Ruth has relatives in 40 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
Nicknames & forms 24
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Ruthiediminutive · English
- Ruthannvariant
- Ruthannevariant
- Rutvariant · Polish, Icelandic
- Ruthydiminutive · English, German
- Ruthannavariant
- Rutavariant · Māori, Latvian
- Rutheyvariant
Show 16 moreShow fewer
- Ruthinevariant
- Ruthivariant
- Ruthettavariant
- Ruthellenvariant
- Ruthellevariant
- Ruthevariant
- Rutthlikely variant
- Routtivariant · Finnish
- Routhvariant · English
- Rútvariant · Czech, Slovak
- Ruthanavariant
- Ruthanevariant
- Rutevariant · Portuguese, mwl
- Ruthinavariant
- Ruttvariant · Estonian, Faroese
- Rūtavariant · German, Lithuanian
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 17
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 14
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Ruth
- Ruth BenedictAmerican anthropologist and folklorologist (1887-1948)
- Ruth GordonAmerican actress and writer (1896–1985)
- Ruth Prawer JhabvalaGerman-born British-American author (1927-2013)
- Ruth RendellBritish writer (1930-2015)
- Ruth HandlerAmerican businesswoman1916–2002
- Ruth NeggaEthiopian-Irish actressborn 1981
- Dinah WashingtonAmerican singer (1924-1963)
- Ruth BuzziAmerican actress, comedian, and singer1936–2025
- Ruth DreifussSwiss politicianborn 1940
Characters named Ruth: Sabra (Marvel Comics).
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Ruth, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Miriam
“bitter”
>99% girls
Eva
“giver of life; a lively woman”
>99% girls
Josephine
“God will add” · “God shall add”
>99% girls
Esther
“myrtle” · “resembling the myrtle leaf”
>99% girls
Rachel
“ewe”
>99% girls
Margaret
“resembling a pearl” · “the child of light”
>99% girls
Reva
>99% girls
Mary
“star of the sea” · “from the sea of bitterness”
>99% girls