Hadassah

Gender: Feminine
Origin: Hebrew הֲדַסָּה
Meaning: “myrtle”
Eng (huh-DAH-sah)

The name is found in the Book of Esther as the birth name of the heroine. It is sometimes argued by scholars that Esther is a reconstruction of an ancient Median name that was derived from the word astra (myrtle). Hence it is theorized that Esther may have been derived from a Median cognate of the Hebrew Hadassah.

The name has always been very popular among Jews, but has rarely ever been used in the Christian world.

The name was sometimes given to girls born around the Purim festivities.

Currently, Hadassa is the 95th most popular female name in Brazil, (2011) while Hadassah is the 841st most popular in the United States, (2010).

Other forms of the name include:

• Hadassa (German/Italian/Portuguese/Spanish)
• Dassah (Hebrew)
• Ħadassa (Maltese)
• Hadasa (Polish/Slovak)
• Gadassa Гадасса (Russian)
• Hode (Yiddish)
• Hodel (Yiddish)
• Iddessa (Zazaki)

A popular Russian diminutive is Dasha.

It is also the name of the Women’s Zionist Organization of America.