Meaning
Usage
Pronunciation
Famous
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A friend of mine has a dance teacher who pronounces her name dee-BOR-uh, with emphasis on the second syllable. She's in her early 40s so it's probably not meant to be a trendy or creative pronunciation.My friend and I both think it sounds very pretty, but Deborah herself actually hates the name herself and just goes by Debbie.
This name is very pretty! It works very well on a person, so much so that I think it would be funny if a dog was called Deborah. I like people names on pets, especially ones that one would never picture on an animal, but that's just me.
I definitely prefer a three syllable pronunciation (e.g. deh-bor-uh or deb-uh-ruh) as opposed to the two syllable (deb-ruh), but I think the spelling and sound is really pretty! I think brushing it off as an ‘old lady name’ is unfortunate— it’s really versatile and has real history :D.
I love this name! It is also the name of an assassin played by Kristian Alfonso in the episode "negotiator" of the hit TV show MacGyver [1985] (which is one of my favorite shows haha). But beautiful name! I like the spelling as well!
I think Deborah is a gorgeous name. I love its pronunciation, its classiness, its adorable nickname (Debbie) and its beautiful biblical association. I would like to see this name make a comeback. I also like Devorah as well. Overall, I think Deborah is a wonderful name.
Variant English Pronuncations: DEHB-awr-ə, DEHB-or-ə, DEHB-o-rə, deh-BO-rə, deh-BOR-ə.
I hate this name. Sounds like an old lady who sits in a chair all day doing nothing. The spelling Debra makes it ten times worse. Sounds like a woman in her 50s who always dresses in black clothes and sits all day doing nothing and suffering from depression. This name is great on an old lady but dumb on a kid.
This is one of my favorite Biblical names, Deborah in the Book of Judges was a powerful leader who protected her people. The meaning, of "bee" is kind of cute, and I hope this name becomes popular again.
Deborah Cheetham Fraillon, AO, is an Aboriginal Australian soprano, actor, composer and playwright. In February 2023 she was appointed a professor at the Sydney Conservatorium of Music.
This is a very good name in my opinion and I'm glad to see that it's still in the US top 1000.
Rory, Dora and Dodie could be nicknames.
Deborah Salvatrice Blando is an Italian-born Brazilian singer and composer. She has sold about six million copies sold worldwide, with six albums released between 1991 and 2002. She has seven number 1 single and ten Top 10 singles in Brazil, five singles in the American Hispanic market, and two of them in the Top 10 which became known in Europe, such as the pop ballad "Innocence" in 1992.
Deborah Ann Harry is an American singer, songwriter and actress, known as the lead vocalist of the band Blondie. Her recordings with the band reached No. 1 in the US and UK charts on many occasions from 1979 to 2017. Born in Miami, Florida, Harry was adopted as an infant and raised in Hawthorne, New Jersey.
Deborah Mailman, AM, is an Australian television and film actress, and singer of Aboriginal Australian (Bidjara) and Māori (Ngati Porou and Te Arawa) descent. Mailman played the character Kelly Lewis on the Australian television series, The Secret Life of Us, and Cherie Butterfield in the Australian comedy/drama series Offspring. She portrayed the role of Lorraine in the Australian TV series Redfern Now, and Aunt Linda in the television program Cleverman. Mailman is the main character in the Australian TV series Total Control.
Also Judeo-French: https://www.ellipsis.cx/~liana/names/jewish/levy/deborah.html
DeborahBot5000 from The Mitchells vs The Machines!
I love this name, and see it as unisex. Why? Because in a film I watched recently, there is a male character called Deborah. So I associate the name with him, and therefore, see the name as unisex.
Deborah is my favorite spelling of this name! Debra reminds me of the word "bra" and Debora reminds me of Bora-Bora. If my name were Deborah I would go by Deborah instead of Deb or Debbie; I feel like those nicknames take away the beauty of Deborah! I also like Devorah, the Hebrew spelling/pronunciation!
I love the name and it's a biblical name with power blessings.
A prayer warrior, a leader, an action person. These are part of the category of people that bears the name and
I am one of them
My name is Deborah-1996.
It's nice and it could make a comeback (pronounced with three syllables). Pronounced as Debra I don't like it very much at all.
Love my name. Deborah. Heavy on the Deb and the o is pronounced. Not fond of Debbie but everyone says it. Always tell people Deborah when I meet. Weird how people change it.
My name is Deborah and I love it. I find when I tell people my my name I always put the o sound. Not debra..Deborah. And not deb OR ah. It's not often pronounced the way I like. Beautiful name if said nicely. Had an Irish friend who said it perfectly and I fell in love with my name.
For some odd reason, every time I hear this name, I think of zebra print and the early 2010s. It's not bad, though.
Ufff, I don't know what to think about Deborah honestly. Let me explain: I am Spanish and in Spanish there is a quite similar word which is "devorar", which means to devour. Every time I think of Deborah that word comes to mind, so I see the name a little... aggressive for my taste. Not that I'm a super fan of the girly names, but it seems that Deborah wants to "devorar" someone. Sorry, but this name is not for me.
In the semi-autobiographic novel, "I Never Promised You a Rose Garden" by author Joanne Greenberg. The main protagonist is Deborah Blake, a sixteen year old who suffers from a severe mental illness and is committed to an insane asylum where she must confront her inner "demons" with the help of psychiatrist, Dr. Freid. A film adaptation of the same title was made in 1977.
Super pretty, but it doesn't work at all with my surname.
I was named Debra Kay in 1962, the result of my parents only picking out a boy name (I was supposed to be David Allen). I suppose Debbie Reynolds was the inspiration, which is okay by me, though now I am so pleased to be connected to Deborah, prophetess, military strategist, and judge of Israel. When I started school, I realized that my name was really popular, only most of the other girls spelled it Deborah. When I asked my mama why I was given the "alternate" spelling, she apologetically told me that she chose the more simple spelling in case I was more "simple" minded -- she didn't want me to have trouble spelling my own name! While that sounds like it could be wrong on so many levels, my mama was a precious woman who was always looking out for others -- so I got the easiest spelling of my name just in case. Everyone seems to pronounce it Deb-rah in my neck of the woods anyhow, so it's all good.My timeline for name variations is:
DEBRA or DEBBIE or DEB. My parents called me all of these depending on the seriousness of the conversation. As I grew older, my mother most often called me Debra.
DEBBIE- birth to current by most relatives and random elders who knew me when I was little. One cousin always called me DEBBO, which I have realized is a legitimate variation (Australian, I think, but I doubt he knows that).
DEBRA- when I started first grade to separate me from another Debbie -- I came home from school a little miffed that she got special treatment since her mama was the principal's secretary and so her identity didn't have to change.
DEBBIE- junior high through high school, once there were too many of us to matter-- most of my grade-school friends still called me Debra and do to this day.
DEBRA- when I was 18 and working in my first "grown-up" job -- I no longer liked "Debbie" because it made me feel more diminutive than I already was (I'm only 4'10" tall!) I'm afraid I made a rather big-deal out of correcting folks who assumed they could just call me Debbie, but the point was made. If I am asked today I am more polite, but still emphasize that Debbie is my least favorite nickname. This has also made me more conscientious towards others so I try to never assume a nickname is okay. I met my future husband at 18, introduced myself as DEBRA, and so he has never called me DEBBIE -- unless he is trying to make me mad!
DEB- somewhere in my 30's, I found myself shortening to the most simple variation. I don't have a good explanation, but it just feels right, and has been used on all my name-badges since. Perhaps I was looking for something that sounded younger without sounding cute. Plenty of folks still call me Debra, which always gives me a warm feeling of relationship, since it usually means they've been in my life a long time. The only problem I have when introducing myself is that my last name begins with a "B", so to be understood, I have to say "DEB" pause "BAKER" -- otherwise it is almost undecipherable. I said all that to say that I love my name and really don't care what you call me...as long as you call me for dinner. :)
I'm Deborah born 1998. Most of my friends call me Debbie. It's a name even mommy has adapted.
My personal impression on this name is that it stands out and I like very much ✨✨ lol.
The Biblical namesake is cool. I prefer the 3 syllable pronunciation.
I love that name, I was named Deborah in 1954.
My name is Deborah, pronounced Deb-o-rah, never Debra! At 21 years old today I've always felt slightly unsettled with my own name, insisting on my favored pronunciation has made me feel better about it.
My name is Deborah- born in 1954- Somewhere along the course of my life I read that there were many girls born in the 1950's named Deborah because Debbie Reynolds was so popular at that time and that made me hate my name even more than I already did. I hated my name because it was extremely common and I ran into a good many Debbie's in my school life. At any rate, I finally asked my mother to tell me (when I was around 50) who she named me after and it turned out to be the 'original' Deborah from the Old Testament. Here, I had hated my name for what seemed like forever and when I found out who it actually was that I was named after, it was no small thing. After all, Deborah was regarded as a prophetess, a warrior, a leader of male warriors, and a priestess to boot! That's a whole lot for a female to carry in the Bible --women weren't generally regarded as very special back in those days, after all. NOW, I love my name and regard it as something very special and precious to have been given at my birth.
The Judge Deborah is a major figure in the Bible. The wife of a prophet, she was the Judge (leader) of Israel during its rebellion against Cisera. She commanded Barak to meet the enemy's army in battle, but due to Barak's hesitation, Deborah stated that God would give the glory of victory to a woman instead of him.
Deborah has fallen out of use in the western world as it was popular enough with earlier generations that it came to be associated with being old. I would personally be surprised to meet a Deborah in America who is younger than twenty-five. The name's traditional spelling (Devorah) is still common in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly among Christians due to it's association with the Bible character.
In “Oceans 8”, Deborah is the full name of Debbie Ocean.
I don't like it... some here say it sounds "old fashioned" but to me it just sounds like a cheap escort.
Deborah is a cute name - I prefer Devorah, though.
Deborah Kay "Debi" Pearl (née Smith), better known as Debi Pearl was an extremely controversial book and magazine author who has written the following works: "To Train Up a Child" (1994) (co-written with her husband, Michael Pearl), "No Greater Joy" magazine (co-written with her husband, Michael Pearl) and "Created to Be His Help Meet" (2004). She and her husband were known to encourage the treatment of women as a subservient species (particularly, in "Created to Be His Help Meet" which solely focuses on a woman's/wife's "role" in marriage and subservience towards her husband) and child abuse, which they referred to as "training" (this in particular, is the sole focus of "To Train Up a Child").
My name is Deborah and I have never felt it fit me. I was born in the early sixties when it was a somewhat popular choice, but for as long as I can remember, I have loathed it.
Perhaps it's really because I was told how my parents could not agree on a name for me. Being the youngest child, all the family 'handles' were taken; every name my mother suggested, my dad shot down. Finally, so the story goes, my aunt pulled out the bible and the rest is self explanatory. It came down to a choice between Deborah and Rebecca. I would have preferred the latter. I think that story fueled my feeling of being 'mis-named'... it wasn't like my parents were enamored of it and that's how I came to be Deborah. It sounded more like a coin flip! I'm not a Debbie or a Deb, though many people think it's okay to truncate my name without asking. For the record, it's not!Someone in the thread said Deborah sounded like a grouchy old lady... My sentiments exactly!If I had been smart, I would have changed my name when I turned eighteen. Oh well, too late now... I'm stuck with it!
In 2018, 56 is the most common age for an American (U.S.) Deborah who is registered female with the Social Security Administration. It is the 61st most common female first name for living U.S. citizens.
Don't like this name. Sounds harsh.
My name is Deborah. I commonly go by Debbie and at work I was mostly Deb. I like them all. Of course I was born in the 50s, as was just about every other Deborah. I have always loved my name and as I have gotten older and embraced its meaning, I love it even more.Deborah was a Hebrew prophetess who led an army that defeated their foes, the Canaanites. There is also a Deborah in the Bible who was a nurse.
Respected strong women; during a time when women were possessions.
The name in Hebrew means Bee. The bee symbolizes community, brightness, and personal power. The name Deborah may not be pretty, or how I like to say, “fluffy”, but it is a name worth living up to. ❤️.
The name is gross; same category as Monica. Harsh and abrasive, no charm and no femininity. Horrible choice.
My name is Deborah. It's usually pronounced DEB-ruh unless my family is teasing or taunting me, then it's de-BORE-uh. So that's not a pronunciation I like much. I also think the spelling Debra is an abomination, something teenage boys learn to do in the back seat of a car: "I can de-bra my girlfriend with no fumbling now!" Yes, of course I was born in the 50s. I was unhappy about my name in school because there were so many other girls with the same name or only slight variations. I also felt Debbie Reynolds spoiled it for the rest of us. The name held out expectations of someone short, pretty, perky, and blonde, and those of us who were taller, plainer, more sardonic, and not blonde were failing in our Debbie-ness. I have fallen into being a curt Deb over the last couple of decades, since that's what people tend to call me anyway, even my sister, my ex-husband, and people I've JUST INTRODUCED myself to with "Hi, I'm Debbie." "Nice to meet you, Deb," comes right back. I give up. --D.
My name is Debra and yes, I was born in the late '50s. I went by Debbie until I turned 40 and started using Debra; I like using Debra more so than Debbie. I like being named after the biblical Deborah and I like that it means "the bee" so much that I have a bee tattoo on the inside of my ankle.
Deborah Priya Henry, also known as Priya Emmanuel, is a Malaysian TV Host of Indian and Irish descent and a former model and beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss Universe Malaysia 2011 and Miss Malaysia World 2007. She was also placed in the Top 15 at Miss World 2007.
The name Deborah was given to 348 girls born in the US in 2016.
More than 99.9 percent of people with the first name Deborah are female.
Deborah Ann "Debbie" Harry is an American singer-songwriter and actress best known as the lead singer of the new wave band Blondie. She recorded several worldwide number one singles with Blondie during the 1970s, 1980s and 2000. She is sometimes considered the first rapper to chart at number one in the United States owing to her work on "Rapture". She has also had success as a solo artist before reforming Blondie in the late 1990s. Her acting career spans over 60 film roles and numerous television appearances.
Pulp's "Disco 2000" refers to someone named Deborah.
Novelist Deborah Moggach is a famous Deborah. Her works include "Stolen" and "Porky".
Deborah Ann "Debbie" Gibson, singer/songwriter, most famous for her 80s hits, is a well-known bearer of this name.
Deborah is so beautiful. Many people aren't fans of Debbie as a nickname, but you can just use Deborah, with Deb for short. One of the main characters in my novel is a Deborah, who never goes by Debbie. I have less of a problem with Debbie than the awful Debra variant.
My parents gave me this name, which was at the peak of its popularity when I was born ('50's). As a child I always hated my name for the very fact that is WAS so common. There would always be at least two or three other girls named "Debbie" in my class, leading to constant confusion. It was only after surviving a stroke at age 37 that I came to appreciate my name's meaning "honeybee" (industrious) and that I shared the name with the most kick-ass powerful woman in the Old Testament. I prefer the Biblical spelling "Deborah" and the pronunciation DEH-buh-ruh. While I will answer to either Deb or Deborah, I cringe whenever anyone tries to call me "Debbie" or spell my name "Debra" (which rhymes with zebra). I don't hesitate to correct anyone who gets it wrong.
Deborah is an awful name! Sounds like a grouchy old lady.
Deborah Borkman is an American model of Swedish and Japanese descent. She was Playboy magazine's Playmate of the Month for its July 1976 issue. Her centerfold was photographed by Phillip Dixon.
Deborah Harkness is the author of the "All Souls" trilogy.
A famous bearer of this name is the "Shameless" character Deborah "Debbie" Gallagher.
The actress Deborah Ann Woll from True Blood is a younger bearer of this name. It's a beautiful, classic name that was overused in the 1950s.
The meaning of the name is actually a good one because bees produce honey and honey is sweet, medicinal and nourishing to humanity.
To everyone who is ignorant/anti-semetic enough to make ugly remarks about the name, go read your "christian" bibles. The name is Hebrew and means "bee."
Personally, I LOVE my name. I've always pronounced it as Deb-o-rah, but my Jewish friends always call me De-Vor-a. I like that very much. And I like bees and honey. Happy to share my name with such industrious little beings.
I'm not sure how I feel about the name, although it is my second middle name. When I'm asked I always say Debbie. Not a name I would pick. Little Debbie cakes. I do know a few ladies that are named Debbie. It's a housewife's name, in my opinion. I'm also a housewife, so no disrespect to all the Debbies.
Deborah is such a beautiful, sweet, classic name. I love the meaning "bee"! =)
I like this name a lot but only with the pronunciation "Debra". I might spell it that way if I ever used it because a lot of people would think it was "Deb-o-rah." So, this is a case where I prefer a more modern spelling. I don't like the "bore" sound in the middle of the 3 syllable way. But, Deborah is the way it is spelled in the Bible. A Debra/Deborah could get nicknamed Deb, Debbie, or Dee.
Deborah Watling played Second Doctor companion Victoria Waterfield.
The song "Disco 2000" by Pulp is about a woman named Deborah.
Deborah is a beautiful name. I can't understand people who consider it dated. It's a Biblical name, after all, and as classic as other biblical names of notable women such as Sarah, Rachel, Rebecca, Leah, and Miriam.
This is my mum's name. She pronounces it "Deh-bruh," and is called either "Deb" or "Debbie/Debi." It's a good name in itself, but it's a little too retro 50's/60's for my own tastes.
Some famous actresses with this name are Deborah Kerr (b. 1921), Debbie Reynolds (b.1932), Debra Winger (b. 1955), and Debra Messing (b. 1968). Famous musicians include Debbie Harry (b. 1945) and Debbie Gibson (b. 1970). Olympic gold medalist Debbie Armstrong (b. 1963) also bears the name, as does Mount Deborah, an Alaskan mountain famous for its difficult ascent.
Dobriana in Ukrainian.
My supervisor at work tends to pronounce her DEBORAH name as "Dee-BOR-uh" which usualy isn't found in the pronunciation grid.
A famous bearer of this name is Deborah Ryan, who is Bailey Picket on the Suite Life on Deck, Abby Jensen on 16 Wishes, and Kimberly Walker on What If. Deborah Ryan goes by Debby.
Canadian R&B singer Deborah Cox.
The first thing that comes to my head when I hear this name is: NURSE...
I like this name, but I don't like the nickname Debbie.
I know that I'm pronouncing it wrong, but I usually say "da-BOR-ah".
The name Deborah doesn't mean bee. Its meaning comes from world maybe a spoken world probably the name of the bee comes after this significance וַיְהִי דְבַר-יְהוָה, אֵלַי לֵאמֹר
And the word of the LORD came unto me
Jeremiah Chapter 1-4
It is my name, although close friends call me Deb or Deborah, but never will I allow Debbie, to me is ok for little kids. And the spelling of Debra, well leave my bra alone thanks. Nope De-bra will not do at all, and it annoys me when others use it, and they have been told in the past.
This is my favorite spelling of the name. I generally pronounce it "DEB-er-uh" or "DEB-ruh" (southerner, you know). I like the nickname Debbie, but I'm not so big into just Deb.
Reminds me of debara, the Danish word for debate.
Well Deborah is my name except I spell it as Debra. And personally. I love it! it represents a strong biblical women who did great things. I have this one friend who pronounces it like Dee-bra and I find it hilarious. I was also called D.D. by a teacher but I really don't care, I think Debra is a wonderful name!
The bad thing about this name is that it sounds like debris.
I like this name, and it's very pretty. However, the fact that this is the name of Eminem's mother has made me not want to use it.
This name is ok, but sounds very similar to Barbara.
I like this name but it seems to scream the '50's so I will not use it.
This full version of the name is not as awful as the nickname Debbie, but like Debbie, the name rather makes me picture some ditzy girl from some 80s movie with long, messy, curly hair, big earrings, and neon-colored clothes who chews pink bubble gum with her mouth open and has posters of hair metal bands on her walls. The name also makes me think of middle-aged women with hideous perms and ugly, loose-fitting clothes.
Deborah Reber is the author of the new book In Their Shoes which includes women who have many jobs and she includes many women in the book. Such as: Shonda Rhimes; Joanne B. Sgueglia; Leah Faresh Karp; Missy Park; Kamla Harris; Jessica Weiner; Jocelyn Warner; Alli Shearmur; Danielle Aust; Nancy Pearl; Maureen Shirreff; Anne Corbett; Lupe Valdez; Susan Schulz; Barbara Boxer; Linda Chen; Amanda Koster; Bo Kim; Michelle Grandy; Susannah Grant; Luaren Faust; Melissa Block; Mary Sue Milliken; Susan Feniger; Christine Tucker; Heather Johnson; Cindy Guagenti; Kelly McCarthy; June Ambrose; Holly McPeak; Joyce Roche; Jayne Morgan; Dr. Alice Wilder; Servern Cullis-Suzuki; Anke Langenbach; Leanne Lusk; Amy Friedman; Chiyo Ishikawa; and Dr. Nancy Knowlton. She is also the co-author of The Chicken Soup for the Teenage Soul's: The Real Deal.
This has been my name for years and I have always hated it. I have not forgiven my parents for sticking me with such a common name (at that time). My friends call me DeeDee.
Debra is a good alternate spelling of the name, but it exists only as a Greco-Roman alteration. The ending -ah on Deborah is typical of feminine names in Hebrew as it often denotes a word's femininity. For example, Sarah, Hannah, Oholibamah, Hadassah, etc. Are all feminine names, and in some cases, feminine words.
My mother's name is Deborah and I personally think that this name is very beautiful. When I think of the name Deborah I picture a woman with a strong spirit about her, someone who is independent yet compassionate. A lovely name in my opinion. The only thing I dislike about this name is the common nickname of Debbie. Bleck.
Deborah Drew is the designer on DIYSOS.
Deborah is sort of a middle-aged name now and this makes it less attractive. If it were used on a pretty young girl it might not be so bad, though. I don't like an variant spellings like Debra, but Deborah is a tolerable name.
Love this name since it is my aunt's name. It is very cute and makes me think of a sweet, happy person.
Deborah Sampson Gannett was a woman from Massachusetts who disguised herself as a man named Robert Shurtleff during the Revolutionary War in order to fight for the United States. Her true gender was discovered by a doctor after she was shot twice in a battle and developed a fever. She was given an honorary discharge from the army and is the Massachusetts state heroine. She was born in 1760 and died in 1827.
This is the WORST spelling of the name. That "orah" is a visual affront. It always looks like it is supposed to be pronounced "dee-BORE-ah". Please use a different spelling of this name if you want to use it for your child (ie Debra, which has suited my mother just fine for the past fifty years).
There's a character named Deborah or Debra on "Everybody Loves Raymond."
My mother's name is Deborah and it is pronounced de-bor-uh.
Deborah (Debbie) Harry, front woman of Blondie, is a famous bearer.
Actress Deborah Kerr was a famous bearer.
Deborah was also a poet.
In opera, Deborah Voigt, a great dramatic soprano of our time, is among the carriers of this name.
Deborah, in the Hebrew, means 'the bee', in the sense of orderly motion from its systematic instincts. The root word is dabar, which means, 'to arrange'; used figuratively of words, 'to speak'.
I often pronounce it now as "deb-OR-ah".

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