Isaac
EYE-zək
A biblical name meaning “laughter,” born from Sarah’s joyful surprise at his birth.
Meaning
Isaac comes from the Hebrew Yitzchak, a name linked to laughter. The excerpts explain it through the story of Sarah laughing in wonder, so the name is commonly understood as “he laughs,” “laughter,” or “laughing.” It passed into Greek and then Latin, which helped spread it through Europe.
Origin
HebrewGreekLatinmasculine
Fun fact
In the excerpts, Isaac is noted as a name used among eastern Christians and associated with early Christian saints and martyrs.
Confidence: sourced. Sources: History of Christian Names, Praenomina; or, the etymology of the principal Christian names of Great Britain and Ireland.