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Name at a glance

Amos

Amos is a Hebrew name meaning 'burden' or 'bearer of burdens.'

Ranked #730 in US baby names in 2025, peaked at #105 in 1880, stable over the past 5 years.

Amos is the 8th-century BC prophet whose short book delivers some of the sharpest social-justice preaching in the Hebrew Bible, including 'let judgment run down as waters.'

Browse namesRead Amos's story
OriginHebrew
GenderBoy
FeelProphetic
PronunciationAY-muhs

Is Amos biblical?

Yes

Biblical status Direct biblical person

Amos is a named person in Scripture, the 8th-century BC herdsman-prophet of the book bearing his name.

Is Amos a Christian name?

Used by Christians, not distinctively

Christian tradition Christian cultural usage

Amos is used mainly among English-speaking Christian families through sustained naming presence since the 19th-century Hebrew-name revival rather than saint or liturgical heritage.

Plain answer

Amos is a biblical name, the minor prophet of the book of Amos, used among Christian families largely through the Hebrew-name revival and modern social-justice preaching.

Confidence Moderate Last reviewed July 19, 2026 How this works

Meaning

The meaning of Amos

Amos comes from the Hebrew Amos, connected to the verb amas ('to carry, to bear a load'). Traditional English renderings give the name as 'burden' or 'bearer of burdens.' The etymology directly fits the book's opening self-identification of Amos as a herdsman called by God: the burden he bears is both the physical weight of shepherding and the prophetic burden of the oracles he delivers against Israel.

Sound

How to pronounce Amos

Phonetic
AY-muhs
IPA
/ˈeɪməs/

2 syllables · stress: AY-muhs · ends in a consonant

Forms

Variants and nicknames

Alternate spellings

  • Amoss
  • Ammos

Short forms and nicknames

  • Ame

Languages

Amos in other languages

Hebrew
עָמוֹסAmosThe Hebrew form connects to the verb amas ("to carry, to bear a load"). The etymology fits both the herdsman-to-prophet calling narrative and the weight of the prophetic burden Amos carries in the book that bears his name.
Greek
ἈμώςAmōs
Latin
Amos
Spanish
Amós

Christian background

Christian and biblical background

Amos is one of the twelve minor prophets and the first of the four classical 8th-century BC prophetic voices (with Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah). His book delivers some of the sharpest social-justice preaching in the Hebrew Bible: judgment against ritual observance divorced from covenant justice. The Amos 5:24 oracle demanding that judgment 'run down as waters, and righteousness as a mighty stream' became the single most-cited prophetic verse in modern religious social ethics; Martin Luther King Jr. cited the verse in the 1963 'I Have a Dream' speech and repeatedly in the American civil rights movement. Amos's herdsman-to-prophet calling narrative (Amos 7:14) also became a template for later Christian reading of prophetic authority as coming from God's call rather than institutional office. For more on prophet names in the Bible and the prophetic tradition, see Biblical prophet names.

Scripture

The biblical figure

Amos was an 8th-century BC herdsman from Tekoa in Judah, called by God to prophesy against social injustice in the northern kingdom of Israel.

Read the full story of Amos in the Bible

Bearers

Notable people named Amos

  • biblical

    Amos8th-century BC prophet from Tekoa in Judah, one of the four classical 8th-century BC prophetic voices with Isaiah, Hosea, and Micah

  • historical

    Amos Bronson AlcottAmerican transcendentalist philosopher and educator, father of Louisa May Alcott, 1799 to 1888

  • modern

    Amos OzIsraeli novelist and journalist, one of the leading voices of modern Hebrew literature, 1939 to 2018

Naming history

Naming tradition and history

Amos has appeared in the US SSA records continuously since 1880, with meaningful sustained use rather than niche presence. In the 2025 SSA data Amos ranks #730, inside the top of the second thousand and rising through the 2020s Hebrew-name revival. American literary and educational tradition (Amos Bronson Alcott, Amos 'n' Andy of mid-century radio) kept the name familiar even as its ranking fluctuated across the twentieth century.

Recent US use

Amos in recent US use

Rank in 2025
#730
Peak rank
#105 in 1880
Recent trend
stable over the last 5 years
Years in the SSA records
146 (since 1880)

Source: US Social Security Administration baby name data, 1880-2025.

For families

For families looking at Amos

For a Christian family, Amos carries the register of prophetic social justice, the herdsman-to-prophet calling, and one of the Hebrew Bible's clearest voices for the poor. Ranked #730 in US baby names in 2025, inside the top of the second thousand with sustained current use.

Common questions

What does Amos mean?

Amos is a Hebrew name meaning 'burden' or 'bearer of burdens,' from the verb amas ('to carry, to bear a load'). The etymology fits the herdsman-to-prophet calling and the weight of the prophetic burden Amos bears.

Is Amos a biblical name?

Yes. Amos is the 8th-century BC prophet whose short book of oracles opens the classical prophetic era in the Hebrew Bible.

Is Amos a Christian name?

Yes. Amos has sustained naming presence across English-speaking Christian families, particularly since the 19th-century Hebrew-name revival. The Amos 5:24 verse ('let judgment run down as waters') has kept the name culturally current through modern religious social preaching.

How popular is the name Amos?

Amos ranked #730 in US baby names in 2025, inside the top of the second thousand and rising through the 2020s Hebrew-name revival. American literary tradition (Amos Bronson Alcott, Amos Oz) kept the name familiar across the twentieth century.

Sources

Sources for Amos

  • A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, Brown, Driver, and BriggsSupports: Hebrew etymology; meaning burden or bearer of burdens from amas.
  • The Book of Amos, King James Version (KJV 1769)Supports: biblical figure; 8th-century BC herdsman-prophet of Tekoa.
  • National baby names data, US Social Security Administration (2025 release)Supports: US popularity.

Last reviewed July 19, 2026. See our methodology, or report an error on the corrections page.

Read next

Related names

HoseaBoth are 8th-century BC minor prophets in the Book of the Twelve. Amos preceded Hosea by a few decades; both addressed covenant infidelity in the northern kingdom of Israel, though Amos emphasized social justice while Hosea used the marriage metaphor.MicahBoth are 8th-century BC minor prophets and near-contemporaries. Amos prophesied in the northern kingdom from a Judean base; Micah prophesied in Judah itself. Both share the social-justice focus against the ruling classes of their respective kingdoms.IsaiahBoth are 8th-century BC prophets in Judah, near-contemporaries with overlapping concerns about social injustice and the coming Assyrian judgment. Isaiah's ministry was longer and more theologically expansive; Amos's was shorter and more socially pointed.MalachiBoth are minor prophets in the Book of the Twelve. Amos opened the classical prophetic era in the 8th century BC; Malachi closed the Old Testament in the 5th century BC, roughly three centuries apart.