Simon (given name)

Simon is a common name, from Hebrew שִׁמְעוֹן Šimʻôn, meaning "listen" or "hearing".[1] It is also a classical Greek name, deriving from an adjective meaning "flat-nosed".[2]:232[3] In the first century CE, Simon was the most popular male name for Jews in Roman Judea.[4]

Simon
St. Simon the Zealot, by Peter Paul Rubens (c. 1611), from his Twelve Apostles series at the Museo del Prado, Madrid
GenderMale
Name dayJanuary 5 (Hungary)

May 9 (Eastern Orthodoxy)

October 28 (France, Germany, Sweden, Italy, Spain)
Origin
Word/nameThe Bible
Meaning"listen"
Popularitysee popular names

The Hebrew name is Hellenised as Symeon (Greek: Συμεών) in the Septuagint, and in the New Testament as both Symeon[5] and, according to most authorities, Simon. Some commentators on the New Testament say that it could be a Hellenised form of the Hebrew Shim'on, but if not then it indicates that Peter came from a "Hellenistic background"; this was not unheard of in this era, as contemporary Jews such as Andrew the Apostle sometimes bore originally Greek names.[6]:58

Simon is one Latinised version of the name, the others being Simeon or Symeon. This practice carried over into English: in the King James Version, the name Simeon Niger is spelt Simeon (Acts 13:1) as is Simeon (Gospel of Luke) (Luke 2:25), while Peter is called Simon (John 1:44).

In other languages

List of people with the given name Simon

Simon is a common name and below is just a selection of notable people. For a comprehensive list see All pages with titles beginning with Simon.

Ancient

Medieval

Renaissance to modern

Biblical characters
  • Simeon (Hebrew Bible), second son of Jacob and Leah
  • Simon Maccabaeus (died 135 BCE), brother of Judas Maccabeus and ruler of Judea
  • Simon Peter, better known as Saint Peter, one of the Twelve Apostles
  • Simon the Zealot (also called Simon the Canaanite), another of the Twelve Apostles
  • Simon the Leper, resident of Bethany visited by Jesus
  • Simon the Tanner (New Testament), resident of Joppa with whom Peter stayed on the way to Caesarea to see Cornelius
  • Simon of Cyrene, man forced to carry Jesus' cross
  • Simon Magus, magician confronted by Saint Peter and namesake of the term "simony"
  • Simon (brother of Jesus)

Fictional characters
  • Simon Seville, a fictional animated character from Alvin and the Chipmunks
  • Simon Adebisi, a sadistic Nigerian inmate in the HBO drama Oz
  • Simon Bar Sinister, main antagonist in the television cartoon Underdog
  • Simon Belmont, hero of the video game Castlevania
  • Simon Boccanegra, pirate in a Verdi opera by the same name
  • Simon Camden, one of the main characters of television drama 7th Heaven
  • Simon P. Chillings, a character who appeared in 5 episodes of The Punky Brewster TV sitcom
  • Simon de Belleme, a baron and evil sorcerer in the television series Robin of Sherwood
  • Simon Gold, a uncle of Sally Gold in Tennessee Williams's Little New Orleans Girl
  • Simon Grace, one of the main characters of The Spiderwick Chronicles, by Tony DiTerlizzi and Holly Black
  • Simon Gruber, antagonist in Die Hard with a Vengeance
  • Simon Lewis, one of the protagonists in The Mortal Instruments series by Cassandra Clare
  • Simon McKay, genius inventor played by David Rappaport on the CBS television series The Wizard.
  • Simon Petrikov, more commonly known as the Ice King, a character in the animated television series Adventure Time
  • Simon Phoenix, fictional criminal in the 1993 film Demolition Man
  • Simon Sinestrari, protagonist of the 1971 film Simon, King of the Witches
  • Simon Tam, fictional character from the television series Firefly
  • Simon Templar, main character of Leslie Charteris' The Saint novels
  • Simon (Gurren Lagann), protagonist of the anime series Tengen Toppa Gurren Lagann
  • Simon (Lord of the Flies), character in Lord of the Flies, by William Golding
  • Simon (Trollz), main villain in the television series Trollz
  • Simon, a child in the British television programme Simon in the Land of Chalk Drawings
  • Simon, a child in the Canadian television programme The Secret Railroad
  • Simon, an angel in the 1995 film The Prophecy
  • Simon Silver, one of the main characters of Red Lights
  • Simon Lynch, a 9-year-old autistic boy and one of the main characters in the film Mercury Rising
  • Simon Escher, a recurring villain in the espionage television series Burn Notice
  • Simon, a character from the animated band Prozzäk
  • Simon Snow, the main character in Rainbow Rowell's novel Carry On
  • Simon, a character from the television series The Walking Dead, played by Steven Ogg
  • Sir Simon McDuck, a Disney character who is an ancestor of Scrooge McDuck and Donald Duck
  • Simon Spier the main character in Becky Albertalli's novel Simon vs. The Homo Sapiens Agenda and film, Love, Simon.

See also

Notes
  1. Smith, William, Dr. (1901) "Entry for 'Simon'". Smith's Bible Dictionary.
  2. Barnett, Paul (2002). Jesus & the Rise of Early Christianity: A History of New Testament Times. Intervarsity Press.
  3. Σίμων. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project
  4. Ilan, Tal (2002) Lexicon of Jewish Names in Late Antiquity: Palestine 330 BCE–200 CE (Texts & Studies in Ancient Judaism, 91), Coronet Books, pp. 56–57; Hachili, R. "Hebrew Names, Personal Names, Family Names and Nicknames of Jews in the Second Temple Period," in J. W. van Henten and A. Brenner, eds., Families and Family Relations as Represented in Early Judaism and Early Christianity (STAR 2; Leiden:Deo, 2000), pp. 113–115; apud Bauckham, Richard (2017). Jesus and the Eyewitnesses (2nd ed.). Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. pp. 68–72. ISBN 9780802874313. Quote (p. 71): 15.6% of men bore one of the two most popular male names, Simon and Joseph; (p. 72): for the Gospels and Acts... 18.2% of men bore one of the two most popular male names, Simon and Joseph.
  5. Greek word #4826 in Strong's
  6. Lachs, Samuel (1987). A Rabbinic Commentary on the New Testament: The Gospels of Matthew, Mark and Luke. KTAV Publishing House, Inc.
  7. Harper, Douglas. "Simon". Online Etymology Dictionary.
  8. σιμός. Liddell, Henry George; Scott, Robert; A Greek–English Lexicon at the Perseus Project.
  9. Walter Burkert, Greek Religion, Harvard University Press, 1985, p. 182.
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