Boy · #3,889 in 2026

Zebulun

Zebulun was, according to the Books of Genesis and Numbers, the last of the six sons of Jacob and Leah, and the founder of the Israelite tribe of Zebulun. With Leah as a matriarch, biblical scholars believe the tribe to have been regarded by the text's authors as a part of the original Israelite confederation.

  • Biblical
Current Rank
#3,889
Peak Rank
#1,833 (1979)
Total Babies
927
5-Yr Trend
+94%
1973
First Year
2026
Last Year
1979
Peak Year
#1833
Peak Rank
927
Total Count
53
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Zebulun

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

Zebulun was, according to the Books of Genesis and Numbers, the last of the six sons of Jacob and Leah, and the founder of the Israelite tribe of Zebulun. With Leah as a matriarch, biblical scholars believe the tribe to have been regarded by the text's authors as a part of the original Israelite confederation.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)

  • Biblical
Etymology
The name is derived from the triliteral root .mw-parser-output span.smallcaps{font-variant:small-caps}.mw-parser-output span.smallcaps-smaller{font-size:85%} zbl , common in 2nd millennium BCE Ugaritic texts as an epithet (title) of the god Baal , as well as in Phoenician and (frequently) in Biblical Hebrew in personal names. The text of the Torah gives two different etymologies for the name Zebulun , which textual scholars attribute to different sources – one to the Jahwist and the other to the Elohist ; the first being that it derives from zebed , the word for gift , from Leah's view that he

The Story of Zebulun

Zebulun first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1973, with 8 babies given the name that year. The name hit its high-water mark in 1979: 30 births, good for #1,833 nationwide. About 21% of every Zebulun on record arrived during the 1980s, its defining decade. As of 2026, Zebulun ranks #3,889 for baby boys with 29 births, rising sharply (+94% over the past five years). All told, over 927 Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1970s to the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
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MI
NY
VT
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MA
OR
ID
SD
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OH
PA
NJ
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RI
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MD
DE
DC
UT
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Top 10
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No data

Variants & Related Forms of Zebulun

Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Zebulun. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

Names that sound like Zebulun

Phonetically similar names — useful when Zebulun is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.

  • Zebulon
  • Zabulon
  • Zibeline
  • Zeppelin
  • Veblen
  • Sibylline
  • Zabala
  • Sabling
  • Sibilance
  • Sibilant
  • Cibola
  • Cebolla

Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.

Frequently Asked Questions about Zebulun

What does the name Zebulun mean?
Zebulun was, according to the Books of Genesis and Numbers, the last of the six sons of Jacob and Leah, and the founder of the Israelite tribe of Zebulun. With Leah as a matriarch, biblical scholars believe the tribe to have been regarded by the text's authors as a part of the original Israelite confederation.
What is the origin of the name Zebulun?
Zebulun has roots in the following cultural and linguistic traditions: Biblical.
How popular is Zebulun in 2026?
In 2026, Zebulun ranks #3,889 among boys' names in the U.S., with 29 babies given the name that year.
When was Zebulun most popular?
Zebulun reached its peak popularity in 1979, ranking #1,833 that year with 30 babies given the name.
In which U.S. states is Zebulun most popular?
Zebulun has historically been most popular in Missouri, Michigan, New York. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Zebulun.
Is Zebulun a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Zebulun is primarily a boy's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a girl's name.
What names go well with Zebulun?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Zebulun include Kenrick, Serjio, Johnathen. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.
What are nicknames or variants of Zebulun?
Common variants and related forms of Zebulun include Zebulon. These cover foreign-language equivalents, alternate spellings, and short forms.

Similar Names

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Kenrick
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Johnathen
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Jousha
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About the name Zebulun

Zebulun is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1973 and has accumulated 927 births in the dataset. Zebulun's peak popularity came in 1979 when it ranked #1,833. Use the chart and map above to compare Zebulun's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

Data sources

  • Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
  • Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
  • Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
  • Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
  • Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .

Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.