Given name & surname

Youssef

Youssef is a masculine given name from Arabic. It is used in English and French.

Meaning & origin

Where it comes from

Youssef comes from Arabic.

Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)

How it developed

From Arabic يُوسِف (yūsif).

Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)

The story

Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1974. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.

From dated birth records

Youssef through the years

Babies since 1880
3,705
3,705 boys · 0 girls
Most popular year
2017
193 babies
2025
110
#1,562 for boys
2021–25 vs 2016–20
−24%
Easing
050100150198020002025Highest share 201764
Youssef in U.S. Social Security birth records, 1974–2025, per million boys born. Years with fewer than five births for a sex are not published and appear as zero. Use the arrow keys to step through years.

Where it’s given

Most at home inMassachusetts, New Jersey, Michigan
FewerMore, relative to births Not published
2025 births by state of birth. Tiles are equal-sized so small states stay visible. Highest rates: Massachusetts (7), New Jersey (8), Michigan (8), Virginia (6), New York (12).

By the numbers

In 2025, this name appeared in 110 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,562 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 24.5% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 193 in 2017. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (15). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 5,589 as a first name in 2020; 5,712 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.

Youssef’s family of names

Youssef has a conventional equivalent in the French form Joseph. In French usage, Youssef has a conventional equivalent in the Egyptian Arabic form YOUCEF. In English usage, Youssef has a related form in Yousef.

Walk Youssef’s family in the name graph

YoussefYoussephYousefYousufYousafYousseffJosephYusufYosefYussufYoussoufYoucefFranceYousuffיוסףيوسف

Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.

Hover or tab through the constellation to see how each name is related. Bigger dots are names more people in the U.S. share.

Around the world

Youssef has relatives in 3 languages. Lines run from its Arabic roots to each of them.

EnglishArabic

5 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.

Each dot marks where a language is rooted, not where people with the name live today. Bigger dots hold more names. Language locations from Glottolog (CC BY 4.0); map from Natural Earth.

Nicknames & forms 4

Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.

Spellings & scripts 1

The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.

Across languages 10

Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.

Show 2 moreShow fewer

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Sibling ideas

Names that share Youssef’s feel without repeating its first letter or rhyming with it.

A brother for Youssef

A sister for Youssef