Yousif
A family name built from the Arabic form of Joseph, meaning “God increases.”
The #8,010 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 74,757 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Yousif is a transliterated Arabic form of the biblical name Joseph, ultimately from Hebrew Yosef, “he will add” or “God will increase.” In many Arabic-speaking communities, it functions as a hereditary surname derived from a male given name in the family line. The spelling Yousif reflects one common English rendering of the Arabic pronunciation, alongside forms like Yusuf and Youssef.
History
The surname is most common among Arabic-speaking Christians and Muslims from the Middle East, especially communities connected with Iraq and the Levant. As families migrated to Europe, North America, and elsewhere, the name was recorded in several spellings depending on local transliteration habits. In U.S. records, Yousif often appears alongside variants such as Youssef and Yusuf.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Arabic transliteration is not fixed, the same family line may be recorded under more than one spelling in different documents.