Meaningful Biblical Names Trivia Quiz

Answer: Joshua

Translating from the Hebrew (Yehoshu'a), the name Joshua means "Yahweh is salvation," from the roots (yeho) referring to the Hebrew God and (yasha') meaning "to save."

In the Bible, Joshua was the leader of the Hebrew nation that succeeded Moses and who brought them into the promised land (Canaan).

The only common diminutive of Joshua is 'Josh.'

Answer: Deborah

Deborah comes from the Hebrew name (Devorah) meaning "bee."

Deborah was one of the Judges of Israel before Saul was proclaimed the first king. Deborah was the only named female Judge from this historical time period, as recorded in the Bible.

In addition to the alternate spelling of 'Debra,' there are a number of commonly used diminutives of Deborah, including 'Deb,' 'Debbi,' 'Debbie,' 'Debby,' and 'Debi.'

Answer: Adam

Adam is the Hebrew word for "man," although there is also a connection to the word 'adamah,' which is a Hebrew play on words, meaning "earth."

Of course, in the Bible, Adam was the first man, created by God out of the 'dust of the ground.'

There are no diminutives of Adam commonly in use, but there is a feminine variant: Adamina.

Answer: Jonah

Jonah comes from the Hebrew word (Yonah), meaning "dove."

In the Bible, Jonah was a prophet of God who tried to run away from his task, and was swallowed by a whale, where he spent three days before escaping. After that, he did what God asked of him.

There are no other variants of the name Jonah in English usage.

Answer: Jeremiah

Translating from the Hebrew (Yirmiyahu), the name Jeremiah means "Yahweh will exalt," from the roots (rum) meaning "to exalt" and (yah) referring to the Hebrew God.

In the Bible, Jeremiah was one of the four 'Major Prophets' of the Old Testament, the author of the books of Jeremiah and Lamentations.

Common variants and diminutives of Jeremiah include 'Jem,' 'Jemmy,' 'Jere,' 'Jeremy,' 'Jerry,' 'Jez,' and 'Jezza.'

Answer: Noah

Noah comes from the Hebrew name (Noach), from the word (nuach), meaning "rest, repose."

In the book of Genesis in the Old Testament of the Bible, Noah was the man who built the ark to save a remnant of mankind (and two of every animal) from the great flood that God was sending to destroy a wicked population.

There are no variants or diminutives of Noah in English.

Answer: Naomi

In Hebrew, Naomi translates from the nearly identical (Na'omi), which translates as "pleasantness."

In the book of Ruth in the Bible, Naomi was Ruth's mother-in-law, who declared that she should be called 'Mara' (meaning "bitter") after her husband and two sons died.

There is no diminutive of Naomi, but an alternative male variant is 'Noam.'

Answer: Esther

Esther is likely from the Persian, meaning "star," but another possibility is that the name is a form of Ishtar, the Persian goddess of love. In Hebrew, the name given for Esther is Hadassah, which comes from the word (hadas), meaning "myrtle tree."

In the Bible, Esther became the Queen of Persia (marrying Xerxes) and was able to save her people from the evil designs of the king's advisor, Haman.

Some diminutives of Esther are 'Essie,' 'Esta,' and 'Estee.'

Answer: Elizabeth

Elizabeth comes from the Greek (Elisabet) form of the Hebrew name ('Elisheva'), which translates as "my God is an oath," from the roots ('el) referring to the Hebrew God, and (shava') meaning "oath."

In the Old Testament in the Bible, the Hebrew version of the name shows up as Elisheba, the wife of Aaron (Moses' brother). Later, in the New Testament, the Greek variant of the name is seen with Elizabeth, the wife of Zacharias and mother to John the Baptist.

There are a few variants for Elizabeth, including 'Elisabeth,' 'Elsabeth,' and 'Elyzabeth,' and there are many more commonly used diminutives, including 'Bess,' 'Bessie,' 'Beth,' 'Betsy,' 'Bette,' 'Bettie,' 'Betty,' 'Bettye,' 'Buffy,' 'Eliza,' 'Ella,' 'Elle,' 'Ellie,' 'Elly,' 'Elsie,' 'Elyse,' 'Leanna,' 'Leesa,' 'Liana,' 'Libbie,' 'Libby,' 'Liddy,' 'Lilian,' 'Liliana,' 'Lilianna,' 'Lilibet,' 'Lilibeth,' 'Lillia,' 'Lillian,' 'Lilliana,' 'Lillie,' 'Lisa,' 'Lise,' 'Liz,' 'Liza,' 'Lizbeth,' 'Lizette,' 'Lizzie,' 'Lizzy,' 'Tetty,' and 'Elisa.'

Answer: David

David comes from the Hebrew name (Dawid), which itself is derived from the Hebrew (dod) meaning "beloved" or "uncle."

David was the name of the second king of Israel, who captured Jerusalem from the Jebusites and made it the capital of his nation (amongst many other things).

In English, there are a few diminutives commonly seen, including 'Dave,' 'Davey,' 'Davie,' and 'Davy.' Some feminine variants include 'Davina,' 'Davena,' 'Davida,' and 'Davinia.'

Answer: Peter

Peter comes from the Greek (Petros), meaning "stone." This translation is often used to represent 'Cephas,' which was the Aramaic name (also meaning "stone") given by Jesus to Simon.

Peter, AKA Simon Peter, AKA Cephas, was one of Jesus' disciples, and is credited with being the first Pope of the Catholic faith.

An English variant of the name is Piers, and common diminutives of the name are 'Pete,' and 'Petey.' There are also a couple of feminine variants in English, including 'Petra,' and 'Petrina.'

Answer: Joseph

Joseph comes from the Latin/Greek name (Ioseph), which itself came from the Hebrew (Yosef), meaning "he will add."

In the Old Testament of the Bible, Joseph was the eleventh son of Jacob (Israel), and the favoured son of Rachel. Out of jealousy, Joseph was sold into slavery by his brothers, but that eventually led to Joseph being in a position to save his family in Egypt. In the New Testament, Joseph was the name of the adoptive father of Jesus.

A few common diminutives for Joseph include 'Jo,' 'Jody,' 'Joe,' 'Joey,' 'Jojo,' and 'Josey.' The feminine variant of the name in English is 'Josepha' or "Josephine'.

Answer: Ruth

The name Ruth comes from the Hebrew (re'ut), which translates as "friend."

In the Bible, in the book of the same name, Ruth was widowed and chose to stay and take care of her mother-in-law Naomi. Later, Ruth met and married Boaz, and the two became the great-grandparents of King David.

One diminutive of Ruth is 'Ruthie.'

Answer: Eve

Eve comes from the Hebrew name (Chawwah), which comes from the Hebrew word (chawah), meaning "to breathe," or to the related word (chayah), meaning "to live."

Eve, of course, was the first woman, created by God to be a companion to Adam, the first man.

Variants (in English) for Eve include 'Ava,' 'Avah,' and 'Eva,' and some common diminutives are 'Evie,' 'Evvie,' and 'Eveleen.'

Answer: Daniel

Daniel comes from the Hebrew name (Daniyyel), which translates as "God is my judge." It is derived from the roots (din) meaning "to judge" and ('el) meaning "God."

In the Bible, Daniel was a prophet who lived during the Babylonian captivity, who survived the lion's den, and could interpret dreams.

Some common diminutives of Daniel (in English) are 'Dan,' 'Dannie,' and 'Danny.'