Pete
Pete is a masculine given name. Notable people with the name include:
Meaning & Origin of Pete
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Pete is a masculine given name. Notable people with the name include:
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
The Story of Pete
Pete first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby boy name in 1880, with 50 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1959, when 768 Petes were born — ranking #285 that year. As of 2026, Pete ranks #2,931 for baby boys with 43 births, gradually falling (-12%). In total, more than 44K Petes have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Notable people named Pete
A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.
- Pete Accetturo , American YouTuber and voice actor
- Pete Alonso (born 1994), American baseball player
- Pete Appleton (1904–1974), American baseball player
- Pete Buttigieg (born 1982), American politician
- Pete Berezney (1923–2008), American football player
- Pete Burns (1959–2016), British singer, member of the band Dead or Alive
- Pete D'Alonzo (1929–2001), American football player
- Pete Davidson (born 1993), American comedian
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Names that sound like Pete
Phonetically similar names — useful when Pete is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Pete
What does the name Pete mean?
How popular is Pete in 2026?
When was Pete most popular?
In which U.S. states is Pete most popular?
Is Pete a unisex name?
What names go well with Pete?
About the name Pete
Pete is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 44K births in the dataset. Pete's peak popularity came in 1959 when it ranked #173. Use the chart and map above to compare Pete's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1959 →
- Names of the 1950s →
- Names starting with "P" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.