Bodhi
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Meaning
awakening, enlightenment; the tree under which the Buddha awakened
The story
Bodhi is Sanskrit for awakening, the enlightenment the Buddha reached beneath the tree that now carries the word as its name, and American parents have carried it from surf shops to strollers in one generation. The record shows the arrival: about 160 in the 1990s, the decade a beach-robbing guru wore it in a cult surf film, then 800 in the 2000s, 6,600 in the 2010s, and already 7,300 so far this decade, past the full 2010s with years to run. Decade buckets point, they do not convict. It rides the mindfulness current that also lifted Zen and Sage, names borrowed from practice rather than scripture. In our records it goes mostly to boys, about 14,300 to 560. A tree, an awakening, and a very good wave: the name offers all three readings and lets the family pick their sermon.
How popular is Bodhi around the world?
In the United States, 7,317 babies were named Bodhi between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 35 boys were registered as Bodhi in 2017.
Bodhi is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, New Zealand, England and Wales, New South Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Canada.
United States
1 in 3,000
In the United States, 7,317 babies were named Bodhi between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Bodhi peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 5302017
In South Australia, 35 boys were registered as Bodhi in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
New Zealand
1 in 930
In New Zealand, 62 boys named Bodhi were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
England and Wales
1 in 1,200
In England and Wales, 470 boys named Bodhi were born in 2025, the 115th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
New South Wales
#63 · 2025
In New South Wales, 127 boys named Bodhi were registered in 2025, ranked 63rd in that year’s top 100 for boys.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
Ireland
1 in 1,600
In Ireland, 30 boys named Bodhi were born in 2025, the 165th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. This registry counts each spelling separately; the figures above are for the exact spelling Bodhi, and accented spellings are separate names. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
1 in 2,400
In Scotland, 19 boys named Bodhi were registered in 2024, the 218th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Canada
1 in 3,200
In Canada, 116 boys named Bodhi were born in 2024, the 283rd most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
Austria
last on record 2024
Bodhi is not on the 2025 record for Austria, which publishes every first name down to a single birth, so the name was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Bodhi
Most people given the name Bodhi in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Bodhi · Names that go with Bodhi · Middle names for Bodhi · Gentle names
The Bodhi deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Bodhi truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Bodhi fits with your family’s names and surname.
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