Eden

Meaning of Eden

Eden is a biblical name. In the Book of Genesis, Eden is the garden where Adam and Eve live before their expulsion, and the Hebrew word it comes from, eden, means "delight" or "pleasure"; standard dictionaries connect it with a root meaning "luxuriant" or "delicate." Because the garden is its primary sense, the name is often glossed simply as "paradise" or "place of delight." It is used for both boys and girls in the United States, though it is far more common for girls.

In Hebrew the name is pronounced AY-den, while English speakers generally say EE-dun.

Its best-known association is the Garden of Eden itself. Among notable people, the actress Eden Riegel played Bianca Montgomery on All My Children, and the singer and actress Eden Espinosa is known for playing Elphaba in Wicked.

Eden was a steady but uncommon American name for much of the twentieth century, given to 88 babies in 1970. It rose sharply from the 1980s onward, from 164 babies in 1986 to 1,001 in 2005. Growth has continued: 2,960 babies in 2023 and 3,362 in 2025, when it ranked 70th, its highest position on record.

Pronunciation

Hebrew

• Pronunced as AY-den (/eɪˈden/)

English

• Pronunced as EE-dun (/ˈi.dn/)

• Edan
• Ethan
• Edith
• Edlyn
• Edina
• Eaden
• Edenia