A variant of Josiah, from Hebrew, meaning Yahweh supports or heals.
Yosiah is a variant spelling of Josiah, one of the most honored names in the Hebrew Bible. It derives from the Hebrew *Yoshiyahu*, meaning Yahweh supports or the Lord heals, a compound of the divine name and the root *yasha*, to save or deliver. Josiah ben Amon was the sixteenth king of Judah, who ascended the throne at age eight and went on to lead one of the most significant religious reformations in ancient Israel's history, destroying idols, centralizing worship in Jerusalem, and rediscovering the Book of the Law in the Temple around 621 BCE.
The name traveled from the Hebrew scriptures into wide Christian use, particularly in Puritan England and colonial America, where biblical names carried strong theological weight. Josiah Wedgwood, the eighteenth-century English potter and anti-slavery campaigner, and Josiah Royce, the influential American philosopher, are among its distinguished bearers. The name maintained steady usage across centuries without ever becoming fashionable in a way that dates it to a single era.
Yosiah, with its Y-initial spelling, represents a return closer to the name's Hebrew phonology — *Yo-* rather than the Latinized *Jo-*. This shift has grown popular among families seeking to honor the name's biblical depth while giving it a slightly fresher silhouette. It sits naturally beside names like Malachi, Ezekiel, and Micah in a revival of rich, resonant Old Testament names that feel both ancient and strikingly current.