Kohen

In the age of the American naming style we’ll just call the “surname” craze, we are constantly finding new entrants to the Top 1000 list of baby boy names. Cohen came onto the scene in 2004, and Kohen followed in 2011. Although Kohen is much less popular than the Cohen spelling, his ascension to the Top 1000 list is evidence of Cohen’s growing popularity. Not to mention swapping the “K” in for a “C” is a super common practice among many American parents. Technically speaking, however, Kohen is a closer transliteration to the Hebrew כֹּהֵן. Parents who are looking for new and creative ways to impart spiritual or “priestly” names on their children might discover Kohen as an original choice. In ancient Hebrew priests of all religions were referred to as “kohens” – centuries and centuries before Christianity and Islam were on the scene. For instance, priests of Ba’al were called “kohens”. Ba’al was in ancient competition with Yahweh; he was the focal point of idolatry worship in the days of the Hebrew Bible and Old Testament. Ancient Canaanite and Mesopotamian priests who oversaw sacrifices and rituals to Ba’al (mainly for agricultural and military benefits) would have also been referred to as “kohens”.