Matt
Meaning
nickname for Matthew, gift of God
The story
Matt is a short form of Matthew, and Behind the Name lists its famous bearers, the actors Matt Dillon and Matt Damon; Matthew behind it carries the receipted "gift of God". Matt also has its own line in the published American record, entered as a first name in its own right: about 260 boys in the 1890s, a few hundred a decade for half a century, about 3,500 in the 1950s, about 8,200 in the 1960s, and about 230 so far this decade. What that line measures is exactly what it says: babies whose recorded first name was Matt, no more and no less. A one-syllable entry in the books, with the full formal name and its gift standing right behind it.
The formal names behind Matt
Matt is an established short form of this name.
Matthew · Hebrew origin · gift of God
Matt around the world
One shared root links 8 names across 5 languages.
Shared root: from Hebrew Mattityahu "gift of Yahweh", via Greek Matthaios
The constellation
More branches
Popularity, 1890–2024
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Matt peaked in the 1960s.
When you meet Matt
People given the name Matt in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1960 to 1989. Age is the one thing the name won't tell you.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
The Matt deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Matt 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 Matt fits with your family’s names and surname.
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