Yaphet
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- YAH-fet
- Origin
- Hebrew
Yaphet is a boys' name of Hebrew origin, meaning “may he expand”. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Yaphet mean?
Hebrew: spelling of Yafet, itself a form of Japheth
“may he expand”
Form of Japheth, one of the three sons of Noah in Genesis.
Meaning borrowed from Yafet.
Is Yaphet a girl's or a boy's name?
Yaphet is a boys' name.
How popular is Yaphet in the US?
No boys in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 1972, with 20 boys. It first appears in the records in 1971.
Half of all the boys named Yaphet in the US since 1880 were born between 1977 and 2012, the years shaded on the chart below.
Yaphet in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2021 | 6 | #10,794 |
| 2020 | 5 | #12,016 |
| 2019 | 8 | #8,883 |
| 2018 | 7 | #9,664 |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 10 | #7,600 |
| 2015 | 9 | #8,035 |
| 2014 | 6 | #10,711 |
| 2013 | 7 | #9,650 |
| 2012 | 12 | #6,620 |
| 2011 | 0 | – |
| 2010 | 9 | #8,133 |
| 2009 | 13 | #6,432 |
| 2008 | 0 | – |
| 2007 | 13 | #6,259 |
| 2006 | 14 | #5,777 |
| 2005 | 5 | #11,464 |
| 2004 | 8 | #8,137 |
| 2003 | 11 | #6,251 |
| 2002 | 0 | – |
| 2001 | 6 | #9,236 |
| 2000 | 6 | #9,104 |
| 1999 | 8 | #7,132 |
| 1998 | 8 | #6,837 |
| 1997 | 5 | #9,259 |
| 1996 | 0 | – |
| 1995 | 0 | – |
| 1994 | 6 | #7,764 |
| 1993 | 0 | – |
| 1992 | 0 | – |
| 1991 | 0 | – |
| 1990 | 0 | – |
| 1989 | 0 | – |
| 1988 | 0 | – |
| 1987 | 0 | – |
| 1986 | 0 | – |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 0 | – |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 0 | – |
| 1981 | 0 | – |
| 1980 | 0 | – |
| 1979 | 0 | – |
| 1978 | 6 | #5,056 |
| 1977 | 11 | #3,384 |
| 1976 | 13 | #2,945 |
| 1975 | 0 | – |
| 1974 | 5 | #5,225 |
| 1973 | 15 | #2,511 |
| 1972 | 20 | #2,020 |
| 1971 | 9 | #3,368 |
Names like Yaphet
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Yusuf Yitzchok Avi Yakov Shiloh Ari Yahir Yosef Arjun Imran Noah Yaakov
More Hebrew names
Isabella Elijah James Jack Mia Ava Jude Ezra Benjamin Isaac Jacob Ethan Daniel Samuel Elias Mateo
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Yaphet: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/yaphet, updated 20 October 2026.