Absalom

Hebrew
"father of peace"

Absalom Origin and Meaning

The name Absalom is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "father of peace".

Absalom, because of its biblical and literary associations, just might appeal to the daring namegiver.

In the Old Testament, Absalom was the handsome, favored but rebellious son of King David. In literature, Absalom appears in Chaucer's The Canterbury Tales, as the repeated title of a Faulkner novel--which refers to the biblical personage rather than the name of a character-- in the novel Cry, the Beloved Country and, on a more trivial note, as the name of the caterpillar in the Tim Burton version of "Alice in Wonderland."

The growing-in-popularity Axel is the Scandinavian form of the name.

# 1709 on Nameberry

Absalom Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Absalom Popularity

Famous People Named Absalom

  • Absalomson of King David by Maakah
  • Absalom Willis RobertsonUS Senator from Virginia
  • Absalom BairdUnion army general in the American Civil War
  • Absalom JonesAmerican abolitionist and clergyman
  • Absalom WatkinEnglish social reformer

Absalom in Pop Culture

  • Absalom Kumalocharacter in Cry, the Beloved Country
  • "AbsalomAbsalom!", novel by William Faulkner
  • "Absalom and Achitophel" satirical poem by John Dryden
  • Absolemthe caterpillar in Tim Burton's 2010 'Alice in Wonderland' film