Kobe
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Meaning
from the Japanese port city of Kobe; honoring Kobe Bryant, widely adopted in the Philippines
The story
Kobe begins on Japan's coast and ends, for many families, in remembrance. The name is shared with the port city of Kobe, but around the world its most powerful human association is Kobe Bryant. His basketball career made the sound familiar far beyond the United States, and the name was adopted widely in the Philippines, where the sport and the player both commanded enormous affection. After Bryant and his daughter Gianna died in January 2020, Kobe became more than a sports reference. It could be a memorial, an expression of admiration, or simply a name whose warmth had outgrown its famous bearer. The American count rises again in the years after that loss, a supporting fact that cannot explain any individual family's choice. What makes the story compelling is the distance the name traveled: from a Japanese city to arenas across the world, then into private family histories. A place name became a person's name, and one person's life made it feel personal to millions.
How popular is Kobe around the world?
In the United States, 5,898 babies were named Kobe between 2020 and 2025. In New Zealand, 32 boys named Kobe were registered in 2025.
Kobe is on the official records of the United States, New Zealand, South Australia, Scotland, England and Wales, Ireland and Canada.
United States
1 in 3,700
In the United States, 5,898 babies were named Kobe between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Kobe peaked in the 2000s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
New Zealand
1 in 1,800
In New Zealand, 32 boys named Kobe 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
South Australia
1 in 2,6002017
In South Australia, 7 boys were registered as Kobe 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
Scotland
1 in 4,600
In Scotland, 10 boys named Kobe were registered in 2024, the 352nd 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
England and Wales
1 in 5,200
In England and Wales, 112 boys named Kobe were born in 2025, the 372nd 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
Ireland
1 in 6,800
In Ireland, 8 boys named Kobe were born in 2025, the 432nd most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.
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. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Canada
1 in 8,500
In Canada, 43 boys named Kobe were born in 2024, the 641st 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)
Argentina
last on record 2020
Kobe is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Austria
last on record 2024
Kobe 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 1 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)
Mexico City City
last on record 2016
Kobe is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
Not on the record in Spain, 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 Kobe
Most people given the name Kobe in the United States are teenagers or young adults today.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
The Kobe deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Kobe 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 Kobe fits with your family’s names and surname.
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