Given name of multiple origins
 | This article has multiple issues. Please help improve it or discuss these issues on the talk page. (Learn how and when to remove these messages)
|
| Pronunciation | /ˈkoʊbi/ KOH-bee |
|---|---|
| Gender | Male |
| Language(s) | English, Greek, Hebrew, Dutch, Swahili, Latin, Akan, Japanese KOH-bay |
| Name day | 25 July |
| Origin | |
| Word/name | Ancient Hebrew, Early common era Japan, Akan (Ghana, Ivory Coast, Togo & Jamaica) |
| Meaning | Supplanter, God's door, God may protect, tortoise, Tuesday born, friendliness, ocean etc. |
| Other names | |
| Alternative spelling | Cobe, Cobie, Coby, Colbie, Colby, Koby, Kobbi, Kobi |
| Nickname(s) | Ko |
| See also | Kobe (disambiguation) |
Kobe (Hebrew: קובי, romanized: Kóbi; Greek: Κόμπε, romanized: Kómpe; Japanese: 神戸, romanized: Kōbe) is a unisex given name that has multiple origins and meanings. Origins include Hebrew, Dutch, Swahili, Japanese, Akan and Greek origins. Alternate spellings of this name are Cobe, Cobie, Coby, Colbie, Colby, Koby, Kobbi and Kobi.
Origins
In Ancient Hebrew times, the name "Koby" was used as a pet-name for Jacob. The Hebrew meaning is rooted to the words Yakov (Jacob) meaning "Yahweh (God) may protect. It can also be translated to "Supplanter" from the late Latin word "Iacobus" which is rooted to the Greek lakobos (Ἰάκωβος) which is connected to the base name Jacob and used as a diminutive (nickname) form for Jacob.
The Swahili meaning of the name Kobe translates to "tortoise" or "turtle". The Dutch meaning is similar to the Hebrew meaning but the name is a diminutive for Jakob instead of Jacob.
In Akan culture, "Kobi", "Kobbi", "Kobby" is a diminuitive of "Kobina" or "Kwabena". The Akan meaning of Kwabena means "Tuesday born male", following their day naming system. People born on particular days are supposed to exhibit the characteristics or attributes and philosophy, associated with the days. In the case of Tuesday borns, they are associated with the ocean. Kwabena has the appellation Ogyam or Ebo meaning friendliness.
Popularity
The use of the name has spiked with the popularity of American basketball player Kobe Bryant, with 14,000 children being given the name over his 20-year NBA career. He was named after Kobe beef when his parents spotted it on a menu. Between 1985 and 1995 there were only 14 recorded births in the United States given this name. Later, there were 87 born with this name in 1996, the year in which Bryant was drafted into the NBA. According to the United states social security statistics from 2000 to 2018 it has declined in popularity in the United States, starting in the top 300, but down to 574th most common name in 2018.
People with the name
Notable people with the name include:
- Kobe Brown (born 2000), American basketball player
- Kobe Bryant (1978–2020), American basketball player
- Kobe Bufkin (born 2003), American basketball player
- Kobe Goossens (born 1996), Belgian cyclist
- Kobe Hetherington (born 1999), Australian rugby league footballer
- Kobe Hernandez-Foster (born 2002), American soccer player
- Kobe Hudson, American football player
- Kobe Johnson (born 2003), American basketball player
- Kobe Jones (born 1998), American football player
- Kobe Lewis (born 2000), American football player
- Kobe Mutch (born 1998), Australian rules footballer
- Kobe Paras (born 1997), Filipino basketball player
- Kobe Perez (born 1997), American soccer player
- Kobe Savage (born 2001), American football player
- Kobe Smith (born 1998), American football player
- Kobe Tai, American pornographic actress
- Kobie Turner (born 1999), American football player
See also
- All pages with titles beginning with Kobe
- Kobe (surname)
- Kobe (disambiguation), including people known by the mononym
- Coby, given name and surname
References
- "American Nameday Calendar of First Names – Male Names K". www.americannamedaycalendar.com. Archived from the original on 28 October 2004. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- ^ Bartle, Philip F. W. (January 1978). "Forty Days: The Akan Calendar". Africa: Journal of the International African Institute. 48 (1). Edinburgh University Press: 80–84. doi:10.2307/1158712. JSTOR 1158712. S2CID 143751434.
- Philip Briggs (2001). Ghana: The Bradt Travel Guide (2nd ed.). Bradt. p. 13. ISBN 1-84162-030-0.
- Keener, Craig S. (21 May 2019). Galatians: A Commentary. Baker Academic. ISBN 978-1-4934-1570-0.
- "Name Kobe: Name Meaning, Origin, and Popularity - Baby Names". www.babynames.com. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- Steere, Edward. A handbook of the Swahili language, as spoken at Zanzibar. Рипол Классик. ISBN 9781177635981.
- "Turtle in Swahili - English-Swahili Dictionary". Glosbe. Retrieved 3 June 2020.
- Campbell, Mike. "Meaning, origin and history of the name Kobe (1)". Behind the Name. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
- ^ "The Sociolinguistic of Akan Personal Names". ResearchGate. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
- Kamunya, Mercy (19 October 2018). "Akan names and their meanings". Yen.com.gh - Ghana news. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
- "'Day born names' in Dagbani, Ewe and Fante". GhanaWeb. 9 November 2019. Retrieved 4 April 2021.
- "You won't believe how many thousands of people are named after Kobe". FOX Sports. 29 January 2016. Retrieved 23 November 2024.
- "24 facts about amazing Kobe Bryant". www.cbsnews.com. 27 January 2020. Retrieved 6 June 2024.
- OACT. "Popular Baby Names". www.ssa.gov. Archived from the original on 2 February 2018. Retrieved 2 June 2020.
Name listThis page or section lists people that share the same given name. If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change that link to point directly to the intended article. Categories: