| Nathan | Elijah | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | he gave, given | Yahweh is my God |
| Origin | hebrew | Hebrew |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | NAY-thən | ee-LY-juh |
| Syllables | 2 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2004 (14,634) | 2011 (14,001) |
| In 2025 | 4,975 | 11,111 |
| Trend | Declining | Steady |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Nathan | Elijah |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 31,755 | 72,049 |
| 2010s | 88,034 | 137,147 |
| 2000s | 134,857 | 110,421 |
| 1990s | 107,332 | 34,652 |
| 1980s | 105,987 | 7,567 |
| 1970s | 65,857 | 3,400 |
| 1960s | 15,524 | 1,524 |
| 1950s | 10,126 | 2,314 |
| 1940s | 5,577 | 2,399 |
| 1930s | 4,699 | 2,135 |
| 1920s | 6,715 | 2,755 |
| 1910s | 7,132 | 1,963 |
| 1900s | 1,616 | 725 |
| 1890s | 1,180 | 704 |
| 1880s | 1,106 | 856 |
From Hebrew Natan, from the root natan 'to give', meaning 'he gave' or 'given'. The same root underlies Nathaniel and Jonathan; on its own it denotes giving rather than naming God.
Elijah is from the Hebrew Eliyyahu, “Yahweh is my God.” The prophet Elijah is a major figure in the Hebrew Bible.
Elijah is more popular than Nathan today: about 11,111 US babies were given the name Elijah in 2025, compared with 4,975 named Nathan.
Nathan means he gave, given (hebrew origin), while Elijah means Yahweh is my God (Hebrew origin).
In US records, Nathan first appears in 1880 and Elijah in 1880, so Nathan has the longer recorded history.