Hersh is a Yiddish name that means "deer", from the German Hirsch, and is a short form of Hershel. In Ashkenazi tradition it is paired with the Hebrew name Naftali, whose tribe is compared to a deer in the Bible. In the United States Hersh is used almost entirely in Orthodox Jewish communities; it has risen from around number 4800 in 2015 to number 2853 in 2025.