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Christian names starting with S

Browse Christian and biblical names starting with S, with meanings, origins, and faith context.

The Hebrew shin, the second-to-last letter of the Hebrew alphabet, anchors several major figures including the matriarch Sarah, the prophet Samuel, and the king Solomon. Sarah (Hebrew Sarah, "princess") is the matriarch of Genesis whose name God gave when establishing the covenant in Genesis 17, identifying her as the woman through whom a royal line would come. Samuel (Hebrew Shemuel, "heard by God") is the eleventh-century BC prophet and last of the judges who anointed both Saul and David as kings of Israel. Solomon (Hebrew Shlomo, "peace") was the third king of Israel whose reign symbolized the peaceful establishment of the nation under the temple.

Seth (Hebrew Sheth, "appointed") was the third son of Adam and Eve, the line through which the Genesis 5 genealogy proceeds. Simon (Hebrew Shimon, "he has heard") was Peter's given name before Jesus addressed him as Cephas at John 1:42, reaffirmed in Matthew 16. Silas (Greek Silas) was Paul's chief companion on the second missionary journey, imprisoned with Paul at Philippi after exorcising a slave girl (Acts 16).

Stephen (Greek Stephanos, "crown") closes the cluster as the first Christian martyr, stoned for his preaching in Acts 7.

7 names Meanings and origins Christian context

Samuel Samuel is a Hebrew name commonly connected with God has heard or heard by God. Hebrew Sarah Sarah is a Hebrew name commonly understood to mean princess. Hebrew Seth Seth is a Hebrew name often understood as appointed or placed. Hebrew Silas Silas is a New Testament name, often linked with Silvanus and possibly connected with woodland or forest imagery. Latin, Greek Simon Simon is a Hebrew-rooted name commonly connected with hearing or he has heard. Hebrew via Greek Solomon Solomon is a Hebrew name connected with peace. Hebrew Stephen Stephen is a Greek name meaning crown or wreath. Greek

S names in 2026

Samuel and Sarah anchor the S cluster's modern register. Samuel has held a US Top 30 position every year since 2002, currently sitting at #18 in the 2025 SSA data, one of the strongest sustained showings for an Old Testament boy name in the modern data. Sarah held a Top 10 position from 1978 through 2001, peaked at #4 in 1985, and currently sits at #90.

Solomon has held a quiet mid-Top-500 position throughout the 2000s, peaking at #368 in 2016 and sitting at #422 in the 2025 SSA data. Stephen holds steady around #380 in the modern releases, and Silas has climbed into the Top 100 at #71, riding the same Old-Testament-and-apostolic comeback wave as Levi and Ezra.