National Samantha Day – January 6, 2025

History of National Samantha Day

Are you a Samantha Jones or a Samantha Micelli? Maybe you’re a Samantha Baker or perhaps more of a Samantha Tracy Lord. No matter what show or film you grew up watching, if you hear the name Samantha, you have a go-to reference or character in mind. It must be how all Samanthas feel when they introduce themselves — there are so many characters to choose from!

Samantha, often shortened to Sam or Mantha, is considered by many to be a classic American name and one that will suit most baby girls when looking for the perfect name. The origin of the name, however, is still unknown. Many believe that it originated in 18th century America as a combination of the Hebrew name Samuel, which means ‘God has heard’ or ‘God’s name,’ and the Greek word ‘anthea,’ which means ‘flower’ or ‘blossom.’ However, the feminine form of the name Samuel is the most common meaning given to the name. Another theory holds that it is the English form of the Dutch name Sijmentje, derived from the Germanic name Sigismund, which means ‘victory’ (‘sigi’) and ‘protection’ or ‘defense’ (‘mund’).

Samantha has been in use in the United States since the 1800s and was first recorded in the Social Security Administration database in 1880 at number 365. Take a second to process that — Americans have been naming their babies Samantha for 222 years. According to Social Security Administration 2020 data, the name dropped in popularity by 1900, ranking at number 701. It continued to fall until 1958, when it was just above the bottom of the Top 1,000 names at number 999, before disappearing entirely from the rankings and reappearing in 1964 at number 464. Not many people know this, but the surge in popularity coincided with the success of the T.V. show “Bewitched,” which starred Samantha Stephens, a nose-twitching witch.