Aaron is an English masculine given name. The 'h' phoneme in the original Hebrew pronunciation "Aharon" () is dropped in the Greek, , from which the English form, Aaron, is derived.
Aaron, the brother of Moses, is described in the Torah, the Quran and the Baha'i Iqan.
The origin of the biblical name is uncertain; however, an Ancient Egyptian origin may indicate "aha rw" meaning "warrior lion", 𓊢𓃭 or from Aaru (meaning "reeds"), the Egyptian heaven ruled by Osiris. 𓇋𓄿𓂋𓅱𓆰𓆰𓆰 According to other different theories, the name could be derived from various Hebrew roots meaning "high mountain", "mountain of strength", "exalted", "enlightened", or "bearer of martyrs". The name Aharon may itself be a variant of Haran, the name given to the older brother of Abraham in the book of Genesis.HaranChaim Vital, Sha'ar Ha-Gilgulim (Gate of Reincarnations) Chapter Thirty-Three, Section 3b. Rabbi Isaac Luria (16th century) connects the character of Aharon to that of Avraham's older brother
The given name was used by Jews and early Christians, then became exclusively Jewish in the Middle Ages, taken up by Gentiles in the 17th century, and popular among both in the end of the 20th century. Aaron was most popular in the United States in 1994 peaking as the 28th most popular name. Aaron is also a Jewish surname. St. Aaron's day is on July 1 and is celebrated in French speaking countries and Poland. The name is generally recognisable around the world as referring to the biblical Aaron and cognate forms in other languages include Aarón in Spanish; Aarão in Portuguese; Aron in Danish, Norwegian, Swedish and Croatian; Árón in Czech and Irish; "" (Ahron); and Harun (هارون) in Arabic. The variant used in the Russian language is "" (Aaron),Superanskaya, p. 20 with "" (Aron) being its colloquial form; diminutives include "" (Aaronka), "" (Aronka), and "" (Rona).Petrovsky, p. 31 The patronymics derived from this first name in Russian are "" (Aaronovich; masculine) and its colloquial form "" (Aaronych), and "" (Aaronovna; feminine).
Y-chromosomal Aaron is the name given to the hypothesised most recent common ancestor of many Kohanim.
"Aaronite" is a noun referring to the biblical tradition and modern genetic line of Kohanim claiming descent from the biblical Aaron. "Aaronic" is an adjective referring to their traditional priestly attributes such as attention to detail, respect for tradition, and religious dogmatising. For example, biblical texts focussed on rules and traditions such as Leviticus are considered aaronic.
Pronunciation In its original Hebrew, Aharon (אהרן) is pronounced as three syllables, a-ha-ron. This Hebrew pronunciation is still used in modern Hebrew in Israel today. The Hebrew sound had no direct equivalent in Greek, when Jewish scriptures were translated by Greek-speaking Jews in Alexandria around 200 BCE to form the septuagint, so these translators used a pair of Greek alpha letters to approximate the same sound, "Ἀαρών". This was translated again by St. Jerome from the Greek to the Latin Vulgate as "Aaron" in the fourth century CE. It is thought that the Greeks and Romans would pronounce Aaron similarly to the Hebrew, as the Catholic Latin pronunciation is still defined this way.
The English pronunciation of the biblical Aaron's name was derived by anglicising the Latin during the Church of England's translation of the Authorized King James Bible in 1611 (possibly influenced by older English translations of the bible from Anglo Saxon times onwards). The modern Church of England Pronunciation Guide, the BBC pronunciation guide,L. Olausson, and C. Sangster. Oxford BBC Guide to Pronunciation, Oxford University Press 2006, page 1. the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints pronunciation guide, the Oxford English Dictionary,Article title Oxford English Dictionary, 2013. the Longman pronunciation guide, and HarperCollins Biblical Pronunciation GuideBible Pronunciation Guide. ed. William O. Walker III, Harper Collins, 1994, all define this modern English pronunciation as /ˈɛərən/ ("air-run", where "air" is the same sound as in "dairy"). This pronunciation is used in the 1956 film The Ten Commandments featuring the biblical Aaron, by UK chief rabbi Jonathan Sacks when speaking in English, and in the BBC production of Shakespeare's Titus Andronicus.https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_rsLl8wDLg4. Titus Andronicus, BBC Shakespeare video series, 1985. DVD ASIN:B000KPG7RA
The English name "Aaron" is sometimes confused with the English name "Aron" which is also derived from the biblical Aaron but through translation routes other than the Church of England (Celtic church) and pronounced /ˈærən/ ("a-ran" as in "arrow"). It is further sometimes confused with the names Arran and Aran which are also pronounced /ˈærən/ ("a-ran" as in "arrow") but derive from various sources unrelated to the biblical Aaron such as the Scottish Isle of Arran and Irish Aran Islands. Aeron is another unrelated name, pronounced air-ron, thought to possibly be the name of a Celtic deity who is also the namesake of the popular Aeron chair. Possibly because of this confusion, the common pronunciation in Britain and some other English-speaking countries of Aaron has changed over the last few decades to include /ˈærən/ as an alternative.
People
Religion Aaron (amora), Jewish scholar Aaron of Aleth (died 552), saint, hermit, abbot and monk in Brittany Aaron of Auxerre (died 807), a bishop of Auxerre locally venerated as a saint Aaron of Caerleon (died 304), British martyr and saint Aaron of Pinsk (died 1841), rabbi and author of Tosafot Aharon Aaron (abbot) (died 1052), abbot of St. Martin, Cologne, Germany Aaron (Copt), a Miaphysite Coptic saint Aaron (saint), a saint of the Coptic Church Aaron the Illustrious (or Aaron of the nuts) (born 4th century), an Armenian saint Aaron Abiob (1535–1605), Turkish rabbi Aaron He-Haver ben Yeshuah Alamani, 12th-century rabbi, physician, and poet Aaron Bancroft (1755–1839), American clergyman Aaron Burr Sr. (1716–1757), Presbyterian minister and college educator Aaron Buzacott (1800–1864), British missionary and author Aaron Lucius Chapin (1817–1892), American minister Aaron Chorin (1766–1844), Hungarian rabbi and religious pioneer Aaron Cleveland (1715–1757), Canadian clergyman Aaron Cupino, Greek talmudist Aaron Demsky, Israeli professor of biblical history Aaron B. Grosh (1803–1884), American minister Aaron Abba ben Johanan ha-Levi (died 1643), Ukrainian rabbi Aaron Abraham ben Baruch Simeon ha-Levi, Jewish kabbalist Aaron Hart (1670–1756), British rabbi Aaron Hazzan, Jewish religious writer Aaron Samuel Kaidanover (1614–1676), Polish-Lithuanian rabbi Aaron Karfunkel (died 1816), Bohemian rabbi Aaron Landes (1929–2014), American rabbi Aaron Lapapa (1590–1674), Turkish Oriental rabbi and Talmudist Aaron Leibowitz, American-Israeli rabbi Aaron Jean-Marie Cardinal Lustiger (1926–2007), Archbishop Emeritus of Paris Aaron Margalita (1663–1725), Polish rabbi Aaron J. Messing (1840–1916), German-American rabbi Aaron Monsonego (1929–2018), Moroccan rabbi Aaron Moses ben Mordecai, Prussian cabalistic writer Aaron D. Panken (1964–2018), American rabbi and academic administrator Aaron Parry, American rabbi Aaron Elijah Pumpianski (1835–1893), Russian rabbi and author Aaron Rakeffet-Rothkoff (born 1937), American Professor of Rabbinic Literature Aaron Raskin, American rabbi and writer Aaron Riches (born 1974), Canadian theologian Aaron Schechter, American Haredi rabbi Aaron Scotus (late 10th century–1052), Irish abbot and musician Aaron Crossley Hobart Seymour (1789–1870), Anglo-Irish religious author and hymn-writer Aaron Tänzer (1871–1937), Austrian-German rabbi Aaron Teitelbaum (born 1947), American chief rabbi Aaron Twersky of Chernobyl (1784–1871), Ukrainian rabbi Aaron Walden (1835–1912), Polish-Jewish Talmudist, editor, and author Aaron Wilson (priest) (1589–1643), Anglican clergyman Aaron Wise (rabbi) (1844–1896), American rabbi Aaron Worms (1754–1836), German chief rabbi Teófilo Vargas Seín (1921–2021), Puerto Rican religious leader renamed Aarón
Book of Mormon people
Aaron (Lamanite), a Lamanite mentioned in the Book of Mormon Aaron (Nephite), the Nephite missionary mentioned in the Book of Mormon
Nobility Aaron the Upright or Harun al-Rashid (ca. 763–809), Abbasid caliph Aaron II (Khazar) (10th century) Aron of Bulgaria (10th-century), Bulgarian noble
Science Aaron Afia, Greek scientist, mathematician, philosopher, and physician Aaron Alward (1828–1886), Canadian physician and political figure Aaron D. Ames, American engineering researcher and professor Aaron T. Beck (1921–2021), American psychiatrist, founder of cognitive-behavior therapy Aaron Belkin (born 1966), American political scientist, researcher and professor Aaron Bodansky (1887–1960), Russian-American biochemist Aaron L. Brody (1930–2021), American food scientist Aaron Carroll, American pediatrician and professor Aaron Cicourel, American sociologist and professor Aaron Ciechanover (born 1947), Israeli Nobel laureate biologist Aaron Clauset, American computer scientist Aaron Cohen (1931–2010), deputy director of NASA Aaron Cohen-Gadol (born 1970), American neurological surgeon and professor Aaron Devor (born 1951), Canadian sociologist and sexologist Aaron M. Ellison (born 1960), American ecologist, photographer, sculptor, and writer Aaron Esterson (1923–1999), British psychiatrist Aaron Fenster, Canadian medical physicist Aaron S. French (1823–1902), American industrialist and philanthropist Aaron Goldberg (1917–2014), American botanist and parasitologist Aaron Solomon Gumperz (1723–1769), Jewish-German physician and scholar Aaron Halfaker (born 1983), American research scientist Aaron Hawkins (born 1970), American engineer Aaron Ismach (1920–2007), American scientist and inventor Aaron Klug (1926–2018), British chemist and astrophysicist, Nobel laureate Aaron B. Lerner (1920–2007), American physician, researcher, and professor Aaron Mair, epidemiological-spatial analyst and environmentalist Aaron Mannes (born 1970), American researcher Aaron Marcus (born 1943), American computer scientist Aaron E. Miller, American neurologist Aaron McDuffie Moore (1863–1923), American medical doctor Aaron Mujajati (born 1975), Zabian physician, author, and entrepreneur Aaron Novick (1919–2000), American biologist Aaron D. O'Connell (born 1981), American experimental quantum physicist Aaron Panofsky, American sociologist of science Aaron Parsons (born 1980), American astrophysicist Aaron Rosanoff (1878–1943), Russian-American psychiatrist Aaron John Sharp (1904–1997), American botanist and bryologist Aaron Shatkin (1934–2012), American scientist and professor Aaron Shirley (1933–2014), American physician and civil rights activist Aaron Franklin Shull (1881–1961), American zoologist and professor Aaron Sloman, artificial intelligence scientist Aaron Louis Treadwell (1866–1947), American zoologist and professor Aaron Valero (1913–2000), Israeli physician and educator Aaron E. Wasserman (1920–2015), American food scientist Aaron Wildavsky (1930–1993), American political scientist Aaron D. Wyner (1939–1997), American information theorist Aaron Yazzie (born 1986), American mechanical engineer
Arts and entertainment
Actors and comedians Aaron Abrams (born 1978), Canadian actor and writer Aaron Agassi (born 1988), Filipino actor and singer' Aaron Altaras (born 1995), German actor Aaron Aryanpur (born 1977/78), American stand-up comedian, artist, and voice actor Aaron Ashmore (born 1979), Canadian actor Aaron Aziz (born 1976), Singaporean actor, singer, and film director Aaron Badgley, Canadian radio host and music journalist Aaron Carotta (born 1977), American television personality, travel blogger, and news reporter Aaron Craze, English celebrity chef Aaron Michael Davies (born 1984), American actor Aaron Dismuke (born 1992), American voice actor Aaron Douglas (born 1971), Canadian actor