Thomas

Where Thomas comes from

Inherited from Middle English Thomas, from Latin Thōmās m (as in the Vulgate), from Ancient Greek Θωμᾶς m (Thōmâs), the Biblical Greek transcription of Aramaic תאומא or תאמא (“twin”), the nickname of one of the Twelve Apostles. In the gospel of John (11:16, 20:24), the Aramaic nickname is also translated into Greek, as δίδυμος m (dídumos). Used as a given name since the Middle Ages, e.g. Thomas the Presbyter (7th century), Thomas the Slav (8th century), Thomas of Bayeux (died 1100). (infidel or doubter): In reference to the doubting Apostle.
— Wiktionary's entry for Thomas
  • Aramaic
  • 2 syllables
Along the way
  1. 1743
    Thomas Jefferson born
    Founding Father, U.S. president from 1801 to 1809
  2. 1847
    Thomas Edison born
    American inventor and businessman
  3. 1880
    First SSA year
    Already #8 among boys — 2,534 babies in the first year on record.
  4. 1952
    Peak, #8
    48,647 babies named Thomas — more than any year before or since.
  5. 1971
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #17.
In the dictionary
  • A male given name from Aramaic of biblical origin, popular since the 13th century.
Namesakes
  • Thomas Edison · American inventor and businessman, 1847–1931
  • Thomas Jefferson · Founding Father, U.S. president from 1801 to 1809, 1743–1826
  • Thomas Mann · German novelist and Nobel Prize laureate, 1875–1955
  • Thomas Hobbes · English philosopher, 1588–1679
  • Thomas Paine · American Founding Father, philosopher, and political activist, 1737–1809

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.