Girl · #9,068 in 2026

Tabbie

A tabby cat, or simply tabby, describes any domestic cat with a coat pattern distinguished by an M-shaped marking on its forehead, stripes by its eyes, cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail. Tabby cats display characteristic striped, dotted, lined, flecked, banded, or swirled patterns on the body: neck, shoulders, sides, flanks, chest.

Current Rank
#9,068
Peak Rank
#6,042 (1967)
Total Babies
26
5-Yr Trend
Stable
1958
First Year
1975
Last Year
1967
Peak Year
#6042
Peak Rank
26
Total Count
5
Years Active

Meaning & Origin of Tabbie

What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.

A tabby cat, or simply tabby, describes any domestic cat with a coat pattern distinguished by an M-shaped marking on its forehead, stripes by its eyes, cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail. Tabby cats display characteristic striped, dotted, lined, flecked, banded, or swirled patterns on the body: neck, shoulders, sides, flanks, chest.

Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →

Etymology
The English term tabby originally referred to "striped silk taffeta ", from the French word tabis , meaning "a rich watered silk ". This can be further traced to the Middle French atabis (14th century), which stemmed from the Arabic term عتابية / ʿattābiyya . This word is a reference to the Attabiya district of Baghdad , noted for its striped cloth and silk; itself named after the Umayyad governor of Mecca Attab ibn Asid . Such silk cloth became popular in the Muslim world and spread to England, where the word "tabby" became commonly used in the 17th and 18th centuries. Use of the term tabby c
Origin & history
Since the tabby pattern is a common wild type, it might be assumed that medieval cats were tabbies. However, the natural philosopher John Aubrey believed this to be untrue. Sometime after the mid-17th century, he noted that William Laud , the Archbishop of Canterbury was " a great lover of Cats " and " was presented with some Cyprus -cats, i.e. our Tabby-Cats ". He then claimed that " I doe well remember that the common English Catt, was white with some blueish piednesse [i.e. with grey parts]. The race or breed of them is now almost lost. " Despite this, most drawings and paintings of cats in

The Story of Tabbie

Tabbie first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a baby girl name in 1958, with 5 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1967, when 6 Tabbies were born — ranking #6,042 that year. As of 2026, Tabbie ranks #9,068 for baby girls with 5 births, with steady use. In total, more than 26 Tabbies have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1950s through the 2020s.

Popularity Over Time

Popularity by State

ME
WA
MT
ND
MN
WI
MI
NY
VT
NH
MA
OR
ID
SD
IA
IL
IN
OH
PA
NJ
CT
RI
CA
NV
WY
NE
MO
KY
WV
VA
MD
DE
DC
UT
CO
KS
AR
TN
NC
SC
AK
AZ
NM
OK
LA
MS
AL
GA
HI
TX
FL
Top 10
11-50
51-100
101-500
500+
No data

Names that sound like Tabbie

Phonetically similar names — useful when Tabbie 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 Tabbie

What does the name Tabbie mean?
A tabby cat, or simply tabby, describes any domestic cat with a coat pattern distinguished by an M-shaped marking on its forehead, stripes by its eyes, cheeks, along its back, and around its legs and tail. Tabby cats display characteristic striped, dotted, lined, flecked, banded, or swirled patterns on the body: neck, shoulders, sides, flanks, chest.
How popular is Tabbie in 2026?
In 2026, Tabbie ranks #9,068 among girls' names in the U.S., with 5 babies given the name that year.
When was Tabbie most popular?
Tabbie reached its peak popularity in 1967, ranking #6,042 that year with 6 babies given the name.
Is Tabbie a unisex name?
In U.S. Social Security records, Tabbie is primarily a girl's name. We don't have meaningful data for it as a boy's name.
What names go well with Tabbie?
Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Tabbie include Sybella, Leath, Earlina. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data.

About the name Tabbie

Tabbie is a girl baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1958 and has accumulated 26 births in the dataset. Tabbie's peak popularity came in 1967 when it ranked #6,042. Use the chart and map above to compare Tabbie's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.

Continue exploring

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.