Jesse

JESS·ee · 2 syllables

Jesse is comfortably familiar.

89/100

Strong Practical Fit

Balanced across pronunciation, everyday use, lifetime fit and international use.

Name Profile

Pronunciation & Spelling
Effortless
A documented English pronunciation is on file: JESS-ee.
91/100
Everyday Use
Low risk
Shortens naturally in everyday use, to one established short form.
95/100
Growing Up
Strong lifetime fit
Works comfortably across child and adult settings.
82/100
International Use
Broad international fit
Works cleanly across the assessed languages and writing systems.
85/100

NAME DETAILS

DOCUMENTED USE: Masculine
COMMON FORMS: Jess
CLOSE SPELLINGS: Jessie; Jessy; Jessi
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS: Jessé; Isai; Yishai

ORIGIN & HISTORY

About the name

Jesse traces to the Old Testament figure who fathered King David, giving the name deep roots in Israelite royal genealogy. Its exact Hebrew meaning has never been fully agreed upon — 'gift' and 'existence/there is' are the two candidate readings most consistently cited — but its biblical identity as David's father has kept it in steady English-language use since at least the 1880s.

יִשַׁי (Yishai, Biblical Hebrew).
Mythological and religious contextIn the Old Testament, Jesse was the father of King David, making him a key ancestral figure in Israelite royal genealogy; the phrase 'Root of Jesse,' referencing this lineage, is also used in later Christian messianic tradition to describe descent from Jesse through David.

POPULARITY

Jesse over time

United States

#184RANK

Rank #184 gives national context, not a classroom forecast.

Recognizable without feeling automatic. Ranked #184 in the U.S., 2025.

SourceU.S. Social Security Administration · 2025 release

Pronunciation & Forms

SAY IT

JESS·ee

STRESS ON THE FIRST SYLLABLE

COMMON FORMS

Jess

CLOSE SPELLINGS

Jessie
Jessy
Jessi

OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS

JesséFR/PT
IsaiES/Latin
IessaiBiblical Greek
YishaiHE

PRACTICAL LIFE

How This Name Lives

AT SCHOOL & DAY TO DAY

Jesse is short, friendly, and easy for a child to say and spell, and its casual, nickname-like sound makes it feel approachable rather than formal on a young child.

INTO ADULTHOOD

Jesse reads as relaxed and approachable for an adult, sitting comfortably between a full formal name and a nickname, with an easygoing, unpretentious quality that has kept it steadily in use since the 1880s.

Cultural Footprint

TRACEABLE ORIGIN

Jesse Owens (1913–1980)American track and field athlete, four-time Olympic gold medalist
Jesse James (1847–1882)American outlaw
Jesse JacksonAmerican civil rights activist and politician

Community Impressions

Jesse feels easygoing and timeless — a biblical name (father of King David) that has quietly stayed in continuous English-language use since the 1880s without ever feeling dated to one era.

How this name is commonly received · not used in the score

More about Jesse

FORMALITY

Jesse works comfortably as both a complete formal name and an informal, friendly-sounding name on its own; Jess serves as its natural short form.

Names around it

Jessie

EDITORIAL SYNTHESIS

The Decision

Jesse is spelled without unusual letter patterns, and it holds up in everyday use. Surname-dependent compatibility remains unassessed until a surname is added.

STRENGTH

A documented English pronunciation is on file. Uses standard characters that systems widely handle cleanly.

BEST FIT

Everyday Use is the strongest-scoring part of this name — no obvious nickname traps, rhymes, or initial issues detected.

FULL-NAME CHECK