The Jewish people are a diasporic one, and though they now have a homeland in Israel, this was not always the case. Interestingly, to be Jewish is both a religious affiliation and a genetic or inherited one, though conversion is of course possible.
Good Jewish names take a lot of forms, and Jewish culture has at times been influenced by the countries many Jewish people lived in for a time. You can see this is the overlap of German and Yiddish words, for example. Another thing to remember is that descent is traced along the matrilineal line.
Good Jewish Names
Good Jewish names can take many forms and can overlap with Israeli, German, or even Spanish naming conventions at times.
- Meilseoir Bach
- Jud Zangwill
- Zachary Hurwitz
- Benson Kedar
- Mendel Schiff
- Elam Fiedler
- Gideon Samuels
- Jason Shapiro
- Oved Jessel
Tuvya Henriques
Tuvya has always wanted to become a rabbi, and she never let anyone stop her. She studied, worked hard, and still managed to send money back to her parents in Spain. And now she’s achieved her goal, and there are more questions than she ever imagined.
- Japhet Krausz
- Meyer Friedman
- Kobe Golan
- Simon Ganani
- Kenaz Sherman
- Dantrell Pinero
- EIlis Bashevis
- Adniel Bruck
- Kobe Weizmann
Simon Kupner
The Kupnet Family Deli has been around for decades. It’s a family business and Simon is an only child. How can he possibly tell his parents that he’d much rather work as a sportscaster?
- Zachary Baskin
- Adar Mattuck
- Jud Gaster
- Chagai Dayan
- Sampson Okin
Female Jewish Names
Female Jewish names have a slight tendency to end in vowel sounds.
- Mai Einhorn
- Ya’ara Lerner
- Eliora Pirbright
- Ahava Abrams
- Diana Metz
- Avigail Filipowski
- Talma Myer
- Shoshana Jessel
- Chedva Levy
Eliora Aidallbery
Eliora never wanted to be a Professor of Hebrew, she was much more interested in teaching history, but there are only ever so many openings at a university, and competition is fierce. She’s grateful to her personal history, but she’d love it to not pigeonhole her quite so often.
- Shifra Theodores
- Aliza Isaacson
- Drora Gluckstein
- Gabi Harel
- Sofia Schach
- Ya’ara Kahn
- Daniela Sklare
- Shulamit Shulman
- Marina Ganani
Yulia Kahn
How dare you imply that Yulia would ever take advantage of her last name to secure acting roles for herself! Yes, her grandfather was a famous director, and both of her parents were famous for writing and acting, but all of her success is purely down to her own efforts, thank you very much!
- Carmit Weber
- Tzufit Straus
- Bina Moses
- Chavatzelet Pick
- Estee Gerber
Male Jewish Names
Male Jewish names can take many forms, but you can often find ideas by looking at the Old Testament of the Bible, or even the Torah if you can read Hebrew.
- Jeremy Lipman
- Samson Pollack
- Jacob Kobler
- Zevulun Livshin
- Ixaka Dresner
- Gilon Sokolov
- Errapel Wolf
- Jessie Gold
- Dov Wirth
Armin Feinstein
Armin needs a break. There are only a few months left before college applications are due, and he’s been burned out for at least a year. He just wants to stop and relax, but there’s so much pressure! Be a doctor! Be a lawyer! Get into a good school! Sometimes he just wants to run away from it all.
- Eliezer Alter
- Cain Loewe
- Zani Altmann
- Ariel Abrams
- Jordan Ballin
- Marnin Mohilewer
- Adam Bashevis
- Zane Sylvester
- Jorim Salbstein
Abisha Steinberg
Everyone in Israel has to do army service. It’s not a choice. Abisha doesn’t complain about his stint in the armed forces, but he hates it. He hates having to live in fear and violence like this. If he could he’d move. America, maybe. He just needs a way to get there.
- Choni Gottesman
- Mosheh Eisner
- Tzion Pinsker
- Avishay Kaplan
- Gabrielo Ben
How often do you include Jewish characters or tropes in your games? Do you have any preferred strategies for coming up with good Jewish names? Do you have a favorite Jewish character from fiction and why is it Magneto? Let us know in the comments below!
