Gideon
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Meaning
from Hebrew, "hewer" or "one who cuts down"; in Judges, an angel addresses Gideon as a mighty warrior
The story
Judges introduces Gideon doing farm work in a place chosen for concealment. He is threshing wheat at a winepress to hide it from the Midianites when an angel addresses him as a mighty warrior. The name itself means hewer, or someone who cuts down; warrior belongs to the greeting in the story. Before the night attack, he asks for reassurance through a fleece: first dew on the wool with dry ground around it, then the reverse. Later the account moves into the night, with his company carrying trumpets and jars that conceal torches. They break the jars and sound the trumpets as the opposing camp falls into confusion. Between the hidden wheat and the revealed torchlight, the narrative gives Gideon more than a military label. It shows questions, requests for signs and a sequence of actions before the familiar victory.
How popular is Gideon around the world?
In the United States, 6,252 babies were named Gideon between 2020 and 2025.
Gideon is on the official records of the United States, Canada, Ireland, South Australia, England and Wales, Austria, Brazil, Mexico City and Spain.
United States
1 in 3,500
In the United States, 6,252 babies were named Gideon between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Gideon peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 5,600
In Canada, 65 boys named Gideon were born in 2024, the 468th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Ireland
1 in 11,000
In Ireland, 5 boys named Gideon were born in 2025, the 577th most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 boy was registered as Gideon in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 19,000
In England and Wales, 31 boys named Gideon were born in 2025, the 976th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Austria
1 in 38,000
In Austria, 2 boys named Gideon were born in 2025, ranked 1,241st among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Brazil
1 in 100,000
At the 2022 census, 2,108 people in Brazil were named Gideon, ranked 4,932nd, with a median age of 40.
Among people named Gideon living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Mexico City City
1 in 120,000
In Mexico City, there was 1 registration of Gideon in 2022.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Spain
1 in 740,000
In Spain, 61 residents are named Gideon, ranked 12,333rd among men, with a mean age of 26.1 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
New Zealand
last on record 2024
Gideon is not on the 2025 record for New Zealand, where names under 10 in a year are excluded at source.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Scotland
last on record 2020
Gideon is not on the 2024 record for Scotland, where spellings under 3 in total are suppressed at source.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Not on the record in Argentina, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Gideon
Most people given the name Gideon in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Gideon · Names that go with Gideon · Warrior names
The Gideon deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Gideon truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Gideon fits with your family’s names and surname.
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