Moses ( el, Μωϋσῆς),from Latin and Greek Moishe ( yi, משה),from Yiddish Moshe ( he, מֹשֶׁה),from Modern Hebrew or Movses (

Armenian Armenian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Armenia, a country in the South Caucasus region of Eurasia * Armenians, the national people of Armenia, or people of Armenian descent ** Armenian Diaspora, Armenian communities across the ...

: Մովսես) from Armenian is a male given name, after the

biblical The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

figure Moses. According to the

Torah The Torah (; hbo, ''Tōrā'', "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. In that sense, Torah means the s ...

, the name "Moses" comes from the

Hebrew Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserved ...

verb, meaning "to pull out/draw out"

f water F, or f, is the sixth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''ef'' (pronounced ), and the plural is ''efs''. Hist ...

and the infant Moses was given this name by

Pharaoh's daughter Pharaoh's Daughter is an American Jewish world music band from New York City. Formed in 1995 by Basya Schechter, their music is a mix of American folk, Jewish klezmer, and Middle Eastern sounds. Schechter is currently a member of the alte ...

after she rescued him from the

Nile The Nile, , Bohairic , lg, Kiira , Nobiin language, Nobiin: Áman Dawū is a major north-flowing river in northeastern Africa. It flows into the Mediterranean Sea. The Nile is the longest river in Africa and has historically been considered ...

(Exodus 2:10) Since the rise of

Egyptology Egyptology (from ''Egypt'' and Greek , '' -logia''; ar, علم المصريات) is the study of ancient Egyptian history, language, literature, religion, architecture and art from the 5th millennium BC until the end of its native religious ...

and decipherment of hieroglyphs, it was postulated that the name of Moses, with a similar pronunciation as the Hebrew Moshe, is the Egyptian word for Son, with Pharaoh names such as Thutmose and Ramesses roughly translating to "son of

Thoth Thoth (; from grc-koi, Θώθ ''Thṓth'', borrowed from cop, Ⲑⲱⲟⲩⲧ ''Thōout'', Egyptian: ', the reflex of " eis like the Ibis") is an ancient Egyptian deity. In art, he was often depicted as a man with the head of an ibis or ...

" and "son of Ra," respectively. There are various ways of pronouncing the Hebrew name of Moses, for example in Ashkenazi western European it would be pronounced Mausheh, in Eastern Europe Moysheh, in northern Islamic countries Moussa, and in Yemen Mesha. The nicknames are accordingly (usually with emphasis on the first syllable) Moishe, Moysh, Maish, Moeez, Mo, Moyshee, Musie (pronounced Mooziyeh). Jews named with the Hebrew name of Moses, commonly held a similar name in the language of the countries where they were born or lived. In Europe they were named Maurici, Maurice, Morris, Mauricio. In Arabic speaking countries, along with Moussa - the Arabic name for Moses, they were also named Mustafa.Maurici Gotlieb, Ezra Mendelson chapter 1, Zalman Shazar Center Publishing
(Hebrew National Library card)

People with this name

Ancient times

* Moses, the most important figure in the

* Moses of Alexandria, alchemist

Medieval

Moses (bishop of the Arabs) Moses or Saint Moses spent many years in the 4th century as a hermit on the fringes of the Roman empire between Egypt and Syria,Butler and Burns, 2000, p. 68. before becoming the first Arab bishop of the Arab people. As he was well respected for h ...

(c. 389), saint, first Arab bishop of the Arab people * Moses the Black (330–405), saint, ascetic monk and priest in Egypt, a Desert Father *

Moses of Chorene Movses Khorenatsi (ca. 410–490s AD; hy, Մովսէս Խորենացի, , also written as ''Movses Xorenac‘i'' and Moses of Khoren, Moses of Chorene, and Moses Chorenensis in Latin sources) was a prominent Armenian historian from the late a ...

(5th century; hy, Մովսես Խորենացի, links=no, ), Armenian historian, "father of Armenian history" *

Moses of Kalankatuyk Movses Kaghankatvatsi ( hy, Մովսէս Կաղանկատուացի ''Movses Kaġankatvac’i''), or Movses Daskhurantsi ( ''Movses Dasxuranc’i'') is the reputed author (or authors) of a tenth-century Classical Armenian historiographical work on C ...

(7th century; hy, Մովսէս Կաղանկատուացի, links=no, ), Armenian historian *

Moses the Calm Musa ibn Ja'far al-Kazim ( ar, مُوسَىٰ ٱبْن جَعْفَر ٱلْكَاظِم, Mūsā ibn Jaʿfar al-Kāẓim), also known as Abū al-Ḥasan, Abū ʿAbd Allāh or Abū Ibrāhīm, was the seventh Imam in Twelver Shia Islam, after h ...

(8th century; ar, موسى الكاظم, links=no, ), Twelver Shia imam * Moses the Hungarian (990s–1043; russian: Моисей Угрин, links=no, ), Russian saint *

Moses ibn Ezra Rabbi Moses ben Jacob ibn Ezra, known as Ha-Sallaḥ ("writer of penitential prayers") ( ar, أَبُو هَارُون مُوسَى بِن يَعْقُوب اِبْن عَزْرَا, ''Abu Harun Musa bin Ya'qub ibn 'Azra'', he, מֹשֶׁה ב ...

(1070–1138), Jewish, Spanish philosopher * Moses Kimhi (died c. 1190), medieval rabbi from Hachmei Provence, Occitania (modern France) * Moses Maimonides (1135–1204), Spanish rabbi, physician, and philosopher * Moses de León (c. 1250–1305; he, משה בן שם-טוב, links=no, ), Spanish rabbi who is thought to have composed the Zohar * Moses Shirvani, Jewish writer who authored a Hebrew/Aramaic–Persian dictionary in 1459

Early modern to 18th century

* Moses ben Jacob Cordovero (1522–1570; he, משה קורדובירו, links=no, ), a central figure in the historical development of Kabbalah, also known as Ramak () *

Moses Holden Moses hbo, מֹשֶׁה, Mōše; also known as Moshe or Moshe Rabbeinu (Mishnaic Hebrew: מֹשֶׁה רַבֵּינוּ, ); syr, ܡܘܫܐ, Mūše; ar, موسى, Mūsā; grc, Mωϋσῆς, Mōÿsēs () is considered the most important pro ...

(1777–1864), English astronomer *

Moses Isserles ). He is not to be confused with Meir Abulafia, known as "Ramah" ( he, רמ״ה, italic=no, links=no), nor with Menahem Azariah da Fano, known as "Rema MiPano" ( he, רמ״ע מפאנו, italic=no, links=no). Rabbi Moses Isserles ( he, משה ...

(1530–1572; he, משה בן ישראל איסרלישׂ, links=no, pl, Mojżesz ben Israel Isserles, links=no), Polish Ashkenazic rabbi and talmudist *

Moses Amyraut Moïse Amyraut, Latin Moyses Amyraldus (September 1596 – 8 January 1664), in English texts often Moses Amyraut, was a French Huguenot, Reformed theologian and metaphysician. He was the architect of Amyraldism, a Calvinist doctrine that made ...

(1596–1664; also ), French theologian and metaphysician *

Moyses Hill Sir Moyses Hill (often written as Sir Moses Hill) was an English army officer who served in Ireland and later settled in Ireland. He was the governor of Olderfleet Castle, mareschal of Carrickfergus, provost mareschal of Ulster, and represented C ...

(died 1629), English army officer who settled in Ireland *

Moses Cordovero Moses Cordovero was a physician who lived at Leghorn (Livorno), Tuscany in the seventeenth century. David Conforte David Conforte (c. 1618 – c. 1685) () was a Hebrew literary historian born in Salonica, author of the literary chronicle know ...

(17th century), Italian physician *

Moshe Chaim Luzzatto Moshe Chaim Luzzatto ( he, משה חיים לוצאטו, also ''Moses Chaim'', ''Moses Hayyim'', also ''Luzzato'') (1707 – 16 May 1746 (26 ''Iyar'' 5506)), also known by the Hebrew acronym RaMCHaL (or RaMHaL, ), was a prominent Itali ...

(1707–1746; he, משה חיים לוצאטו, links=no), Italian rabbi and poet, also known as Ramchal () *

Moses Mendelssohn Moses Mendelssohn (6 September 1729 – 4 January 1786) was a German-Jewish philosopher and theologian. His writings and ideas on Jews and the Jewish religion and identity were a central element in the development of the ''Haskalah'', or ' ...

(1729–1786), German Jewish philosopher *

Moses Robinson Moses Robinson (March 22, 1741 – May 26, 1813) was a prominent Vermont political figure. When Vermont was an independent republic, he was its first chief justice and served a one-year term as governor. As governor he superintended the negoti ...

(1741–1813), judge, governor, and senator from Vermont * Moses Cleaveland (1754–1806), surveyor of the Connecticut Land Company and founder of Cleveland, Ohio * Moses Sofer (1762–1839; yi, משה סופר, links=no), a leading Orthodox rabbi of European Jewry in the early 19th century * Moses Montefiore (1784–1885), sheriff of London

Modern

* Moses Alexander (1853–1932), former governor of Idaho *

Moisés Alou Moisés Rojas-Alou Beltré (; ; born July 3, 1966) is a Dominican-American former outfielder in Major League Baseball who played for 17 seasons in the National League. In 1,942 career games, Alou had a batting average of .303 with 2,134 hits, ...

(born 1966), American baseball player * Moshe Arens (1925–2019), Israeli politician * Moses Barrett III (born 1973), African–American hip hop artist, better known by his stage name Petey Pablo * Moses Michael Levi Barrow (born Jamal Michael Barrow; 1978), better known by his stage name Shyne, Belizean rapper and politician * Moshe Bejski (1921–2007; he, משה בייסקי, links=no), Israeli judge * Mosè Bianchi (1840–1904), Jewish-Italian painter *

Moysés Blás Moysés Blás (alternate spelling: Moses Blass) (born March 24, 1937) is a Brazilian former basketball player. Blass is Jewish, and was born in Minas Gerais, Brazil. He is 5' 11". He played basketball for Brazil in the 1960 Olympics The 1 ...

(born 1937), Brazilian Olympic basketball medallist *

Moses Bloom Moses Bloom (1833 – June 14, 1893) was an American politician, member of both houses of the Iowa General Assembly, and mayor of Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Various publications name him as the first Jewish mayor of a major American city. ...

(1833–1893), American politician, the first Jewish mayor of a major American city (Iowa City, Iowa) * Moshe Brener (born 1971), Israeli basketball player * Moses Brown (basketball) (born 1999), American basketball player * Moses Costa (1950–2020), Bangladeshi Roman Catholic prelate * Moshe Czerniak (1910–1984; he, משה צ'רניאק, links=no), Israeli chess master *

Moshe Dayan Moshe Dayan ( he, משה דיין; 20 May 1915 – 16 October 1981) was an Israeli military leader and politician. As commander of the Jerusalem front in the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces (1953–1958) du ...

(1915–1981; he, משה דיין, links=no), Israeli military leader and politician * Moses Dyer (born 1997), New Zealand association footballer *

Moses J. Epstein Moses J. Epstein (c. 1911 – October 10, 1960) was an American lawyer and politician from New York. Life He was born about 1910 in New York City. He attended Public School No. 7, DeWitt Clinton High School, Long Island University and St. John' ...

(c. 1911–1960), New York assemblyman * Moses Jacob Ezekiel (1844–1917), American sculptor * Moshe Gutnick, Australian Orthodox Chabad rabbi * Moses Harrison (1932–2013), American jurist *

Moses Hess Moses (Moritz) Hess (21 January 1812 – 6 April 1875) was a History of the Jews in Germany, German-Jewish philosopher, early communist and Zionist thinker. His socialist theories led to disagreements with Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. He is con ...

(1812–1875), French-Jewish Zionist * Moses Hogan (1957–2003), American composer and arranger of spirituals *

Moe Howard Moses Harry Horwitz (June 19, 1897 – May 4, 1975), known professionally as Moe Howard, was an American actor and comedian. He is best known as the leader of The Three Stooges, the farce comedy team who starred in motion pictures and television ...

(born Moses Horwitz; 1897–1975), one of the Three Stooges *

Moses Hurvitz Moses Ha-Levi Horowitz (February 27, 1844Baker 1998. – March 4, 1910), also known as Moishe Hurvitz, Moishe Isaac Halevy-Hurvitz, etc., was a playwright and actor in the early years of Yiddish theater.Bercovici, ''O sută de ani…'' Jacob Adle ...

(1844–1910), Galician-born Jewish playwright * (1898–1976), French Ukrainian-born Jewish physicist and radiochemist * Moses Isegawa (born 1963), Ugandan author *

Moshe Ivgy Moshe Ivgy ( he, משה איבגי; born 29 November 1953) is an Israeli actor and director. Biography Moshe Ivgy was born in Casablanca, Morocco, to a Moroccan Jewish family. He was married to actress Irit Sheleg. Their daughter Dana Ivgy i ...

(born 1953; he, משה איבגי, links=no), Israeli actor * Moshe Kasher (born 1979), American comedian * Moshe Katsav (born 1945; he, משה קצב, links=no), Israeli-Iranian president of Israel *

Moshe Kaveh Moshe Kaveh (משה קוה; born 1943) is an Israeli physicist and former President of Bar-Ilan University. Biography Kaveh was born in Tashkent, Uzbek SSR, Soviet Union where his parents sought safety after fleeing from Poland. All of his ...

(born 1943; he, משה קוה, links=no), Israeli

physicist A physicist is a scientist who specializes in the field of physics, which encompasses the interactions of matter and energy at all length and time scales in the physical universe. Physicists generally are interested in the root or ultimate ca ...

and former President of

Bar-Ilan University Bar-Ilan University (BIU, he, אוניברסיטת בר-אילן, ''Universitat Bar-Ilan'') is a public research university in the Tel Aviv District city of Ramat Gan, Israel. Established in 1955, Bar Ilan is Israel's second-largest academic ...

* Moses Kotane (1905-1978), South African anti-apartheid activist, Secretary-General of the South African Communist Party from 1939-1978 *

Moshe Kotlarsky Moshe J. Kotlarsky is an Orthodox Hasidic rabbi who serves as Vice Chairman of Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, the educational arm of the Chabad-Lubavitch movement which in turn oversees over 5,000 religious and educational institutions worldwide. Kotl ...

( he, משה קוטלרסקי, links=no), Chabad rabbi and spokesman * Moses Lairy (1859–1927), Justice of the Indiana Supreme Court * Moses Malone (1955–2015), American basketball player *

Moshe Many use both this parameter and , birth_date to display the person's date of birth, date of death, and age at death) --> , death_place = , death_cause = , body_discovered = , resting_place = , resting_place_coordinates = ...

, Israeli

urologist Urology (from Greek οὖρον ''ouron'' "urine" and '' -logia'' "study of"), also known as genitourinary surgery, is the branch of medicine that focuses on surgical and medical diseases of the urinary-tract system and the reproductive org ...

; President of

Tel Aviv University Tel Aviv University (TAU) ( he, אוּנִיבֶרְסִיטַת תֵּל אָבִיב, ''Universitat Tel Aviv'') is a public research university in Tel Aviv, Israel. With over 30,000 students, it is the largest university in the country. Locate ...

, and President of Ashkelon Academic College *

Moses Martin Moses Martin was an American farmer, A.M.E. Church organizer, county commissioner, elections commissioner, and state legislator in South Carolina. He represented Fairfield County, South Carolina in the South Carolina Senate. He helped found White ...

, the son of Gwyneth Paltrow and Chris Martin * Moses Mbye (born 1993), Australian Rugby League player of Gambian descent * Moses ka Moyo (1977-2018), South African journalist and activist * Moshe Mizrahi (basketball) (born 1980; he, משה מזרחי, links=no), Israeli basketball player *

Moša Pijade Moša Pijade ( sr-Cyrl, Мoшa Пијаде; he, משה פיאדה; alternate English transliteration Moshe Piade; 4 January 1890 – 15 March 1957), nicknamed Čiča Janko (, lit. "Old Man Janko") was a Serbian and Yugoslav communist of ...

(1890–1957; sr-Cyrl, Мoшa Пијаде, links=no), prominent Yugoslav communist and statesman of Sephardic Jewish origin * Moshe Ponte (born 1956; he, משה פונטה, links=no), Israeli Olympic judoka and President of the Israel Judo Association * Moshe Prywes (1914–1998; he, משה פריבס, links=no), Polish-Israeli physician and educator; first President of Ben-Gurion University of the Negev *

Moses Regular Moses Regular Jr. (born October 30, 1971) is a former American football tight end who played one season with the New York Giants of the National Football League The National Football League (NFL) is a professional American football leag ...

(born 1971), American football player * Moshe Romano (born 1946), Israeli footballer * Moses Rosen (1912–1994), Romanian rabbi * Moses Josef Rubin, (1892–1980), Hasidic Jewish cleric in Romania and, later, in New York City *

Moses Russell Moses Richard Russell (20 May 1888 – 18 December 1946) was a Welsh international footballer, who played most of his career with Plymouth Argyle. A full back, he attained 23 caps for the Wales national football team. Early career Russell was ...

, (1888–1946) Welsh footballer *

Moshe Safdie Moshe Safdie ( he, משה ספדיה; born July 14, 1938) is an architect, urban planner, educator, theorist, and author, with Israeli, Canadian, and American citizenship. He is known for incorporating principles of socially responsible des ...

(born 1938), Israeli-Canadian architect *

Moshe Sharett Moshe Sharett ( he, משה שרת, born Moshe Chertok (Hebrew: )‎ 15 October 1894 – 7 July 1965) was a Russian-born Israeli politician who served as Israel's second prime minister from 1954 to 1955. A member of Mapai, Sharett's term was ...

(1894–1965; he, משה שרת, links=no, born Moshe Shertok, , ), Israeli Prime Minister, 1954–1955 * Moshe Sharon (born 1937; he, משה שרון, links=no), Israeli historian of Islam * Moses Sherman (1853–1932), American land developer in Arizona and California *

Moses Sithole Moses Sithole (born 17 November 1964) is a South African serial killer and rapist who committed the ABC Murders, so named because they began in Atteridgeville, continued in Boksburg and finished in Cleveland, a suburb of Johannesburg. Sit ...

(born 1964), South African serial killer and rapist * Moshe Vardi (born 1954; he, משה ורדי, links=no), Israeli computer scientist and professor of Computer Science at Rice University * Moshe Wallach (1866–1957), German-Jewish physician; founder and director of Shaare Zedek Hospital, Jerusalem * Moshe Weinberg (1939–1972; he, משה ויינברג, links=no), Israeli Olympic wrestling coach killed in the Munich massacre * Moshe Weinkrantz (born 1954), Israeli basketball coach *

Moses M. Weinstein Moses M. Weinstein (July 8, 1912 – November 30, 2007) was an American lawyer and politician. Name He was born Morris Weinstein without a middle initial. A playbill for a production at Brooklyn College added erroneously the middle initial, and ...

(1912–2007), American politician *

Moshe Wilensky Moshe Wilensky ( he, משה וילנסקי, also, "Vilensky"; 17 April 1910 – 2 January 1997) was a Polish-Israeli composer, lyricist, and pianist. He is considered a "pioneer of Israeli song" and one of Israel's leading composers, and was a wi ...

(1910–1997; he, משה וילנסקי, links=no), Polish-born Israeli composer *

Moshe Ya'alon Moshe "Bogie" Ya'alon ( he, משה יעלון; born Moshe Smilansky on 24 June 1950) is an Israeli politician and former Chief of Staff of the Israel Defense Forces, who also served as Israel's Defense Minister under Benjamin Netanyahu from 20 ...

(born 1950; he, משה יעלון, links=no), Israeli general and politician

Fictional characters

* Moses the raven in ''Animal Farm'' * Moses E. Herzog, title character in Saul Bellow's ''

Herzog ''Herzog'' (female ''Herzogin'') is a German hereditary title held by one who rules a territorial duchy, exercises feudal authority over an estate called a duchy, or possesses a right by law or tradition to be referred to by the ducal title. ...

Animals

* Moses (horse), a 19th-century British Thoroughbred

Other uses

Moishe's Moishes Steakhouse is one of the oldest restaurants in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 1938 by Moishe Lighter, it was initially called "Romanian Paradise." Legend has it that Lighter, an immigrant from Romania to Canada, became the owner of t ...

, a steakhouse and supermarket food product brand from Montreal, Canada * Moshe's, a chain of restaurants and cafés in Mumbai, India

Notes

References

Bibliography

*Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges, ''Oxford Dictionary of Names'', (1988), Oxford University Press, Moses meaning in Eritrea is Mussie OR Musie.