Ariel—Hebrew for “lion of God”—retained its title as the most popular name given to Jewish boys in Israel in 2025, the country’s Population and Immigration Authority announced on Tuesday.
It was followed by Lavie, meaning “lion” in Hebrew, with the biblical figure David rounding out the top three.
Muhammad, Yosef and Adam were the three most popular boys’ names among the general population. Arabs comprise about 20% of Israel’s population of roughly 10 million.
Among girls, Avigail, who according to the Bible married the future King David after her first husband’s death, remained the most popular name. It was followed by Miriam, a classical biblical name, and Libi, derived from the Hebrew word lev—in this case, referring to the possessive, meaning “my heart.”
Liba or Leeba is the commonly associated related name in Yiddish.
