Benny is the affectionate short form of Benjamin, the Hebrew name meaning "son of the right hand" or "son of the south", borne by Jacob's youngest son in the Bible. Bandleader Benny Goodman, the King of Swing, made the nickname a household word in the 1930s. After sitting at number 835 in 2000 and dropping out for two decades, Benny returned to the US top 1000 as a stand-alone name in 2024 and ranks number 841 in 2025.