Demas as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Demas

What is the meaning of the name Demas ?

The baby name Demas is a Male name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced DEE-mas or DEH-mas (IPA: /ˈdiːməs/ or /ˈdɛməs/).

Demas is Greek in Origin.

Demas is a masculine given name from Greek Δημᾶς (Dēmas), a contracted pet form of compound names beginning with Dēm- “people” (dēmos), notably Demetrios. Thus it carries the sense “of the people,” “popular,” or “belonging to the people.” In classical Greek, hypocoristics ending in -ᾶς were common.

Attested in the New Testament: a companion of Paul (Col 4:14; Phlm 1:24) later criticized for desertion (2 Tim 4:10), giving the name an ambivalent early Christian reputation. It passed into Latin as Demas and into later European languages largely via biblical lists, remaining rare outside clerical or antiquarian circles. English usage surfaces sporadically from the 17th century, reviving in the 19th with neo-classical tastes; it remains uncommon today. Variants include the scholarly transliteration Dēmas and modern Demas; related names are Demetrios/Demetrius, Demos, and Demarchos. Do not conflate with Dimas/Dismas, the Good Thief’s name in Western tradition, which has a different Greek origin.