ESC Name Rank Total Searching... No names found Try searching for: Emma, Liam, Olivia, Noah... 👦As Boy Name 1880 First Year 2026 Last Year 2026 Peak Year #74 Peak Rank 41K Total Count 147 Years Active 👧As Girl Name 1880 First Year 2026 Last Year 1924 Peak Year #512 Peak Rank 4K Total Count 103 Years Active 🌍 ## Meaning & Origin of Theo What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures. Theo is a given name and a hypocorism. Source: [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theo) (CC BY-SA 3.0). [Read more → ](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theo) 📖 ## The Story of Theo ### As a girl name Theo first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a girl name in 1880, with 7 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 1924, when 111 Theos were born — ranking #705 that year. As of 2026, Theo ranks #4,525 for girls with 31 births, rising sharply (+22% over the past five years). In total, more than 4K Theos have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s. ### As a boy name Theo first appeared in U.S. Social Security Administration records as a boy name in 1880, with 9 babies given the name that year. Its peak popularity came in 2026, when 4,748 Theos were born — ranking #74 that year. As of 2026, Theo ranks #74 for boys with 4,748 births, rising sharply (+117% over the past five years). In total, more than 41K Theos have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1880s through the 2020s. ## Popularity Over Time Girls Boys ## Popularity by State 👧 Girls 👦 Boys 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 Theo Phonetically similar names — useful when Theo is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name. * Theow * [Thea](/thea) * [Thia](/thia) * Thio * [The](/the) * These * Thee * Theme * Thieve * [Thi](/thi) * Thies * Thes Source: [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated. ❓ ## Frequently Asked Questions about Theo What does the name Theo mean? Theo is a given name and a hypocorism. How popular is Theo in 2026? In 2026, Theo ranks #74 among boys' names in the U.S., with 4,748 babies given the name that year. When was Theo most popular? Theo reached its peak popularity in 2026, ranking #74 that year with 4,748 babies given the name. In which U.S. states is Theo most popular? Theo has historically been most popular in U.S. Territories, Hawaii, Massachusetts. Rankings vary year to year, but these states show the strongest concentration of births named Theo. Is Theo a unisex name? Yes — Theo is used for both girls and boys in U.S. records, with about 8% of Theos assigned female and 92% assigned male historically. What names go well with Theo? Names that share a similar style or popularity range with Theo include August, Johnnie, Garrett. These pairings are based on rank proximity and naming era in U.S. data. ## Similar Names ### 👦 Similar Boy Names [👦AugustPeak #74](/august)[👦JohnniePeak #74](/johnnie)[👦GarrettPeak #74](/garrett)[👦DerrickPeak #74](/derrick) ### 👧 Similar Girl Names [👧BarbraPeak #512](/barbra)[👧MerrilyPeak #512](/merrily)[👧KaylynnPeak #512](/kaylynn)[👧KadijahPeak #512](/kadijah) ## About the name Theo Theo is a unisex baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 41K births in the dataset. Theo's peak popularity came in 2026 when it ranked #74\. Use the chart and map above to compare Theo's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices. ### Continue exploring * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) * [ Names of the 2020s → ](/decade/2020s) * [ Names starting with "T" → ](/letter/t) * [ Browse all boy names → ](/names/boys) * [ Top names of 2026 → ](/year/2026) * [ Browse unisex names → ](/names/unisex) Data sources * Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. [Social Security Administration ](https://www.ssa.gov/oact/babynames/). 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 ](https://www.behindthename.com/) (used under their public API terms). * Meaning prose and editorial summary — [Wikipedia ](https://en.wikipedia.org/) article extracts, licensed under [CC BY-SA 3.0 ](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0/). * Predicted nationality distribution — [Nationalize.io ](https://nationalize.io/). * Phonetically similar names — [Datamuse ](https://www.datamuse.com/api/). 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.