Zohar is a Hebrew name meaning light, radiance, or brilliance.
Zohar is a Hebrew name meaning "light," "radiance," or "brilliance" — specifically the quality of luminous splendor rather than mere illumination. The root zayin-hey-resh appears in biblical Hebrew describing the shining of celestial bodies, and it carries a spiritual rather than purely physical sense of brightness, suggesting the kind of inner radiance that comes from wisdom or divine presence. The name appears in the Hebrew Bible in the Book of Numbers, where Zohar is mentioned as an ancestor in the tribe of Simeon, giving it genuine biblical lineage.
The name's most consequential association, however, is with the Zohar (ספר הזוהר, "Book of Splendor"), the foundational text of Jewish Kabbalah — the mystical tradition that seeks to understand the hidden nature of God and the universe. The Zohar, which appeared in thirteenth-century Spain and was attributed to the second-century CE sage Shimon bar Yochai, is written largely in Aramaic and presents itself as a mystical commentary on the Torah. It became the central text of Jewish mysticism and profoundly influenced not only Kabbalah but also later Jewish thought, Christian Hermetic traditions, and eventually the New Age spiritual movements of the twentieth century.
For Jewish families, naming a child Zohar is to invoke this entire mystical inheritance — the idea that light and wisdom are inseparable. In contemporary Israel, Zohar is used for both boys and girls, reflecting the Israeli tendency toward gender-neutral names with strong Hebrew roots. Outside Israel, it remains relatively rare in Jewish diaspora communities, which gives it a quality of distinctiveness while retaining deep cultural authenticity. For non-Jewish families drawn to its sound, the name travels well across languages — it is short, clear, and carries its meaning on its surface for those who know Hebrew.