Romeo
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Meaning
"pilgrim to Rome"
The story
Romeo carries the joke etymology plays on romance: Behind the Name glosses the name "from Rome," and in medieval Italian the common noun romeo meant a pilgrim walking to Rome, per Treccani's dictionary. Out of that plain travel word Shakespeare drew the archetypal young lover, and the balcony has overshadowed the walking tour ever since. The name keeps famous company in every register: Romeo Beckham, second son of David and Victoria, carries it through the football-and-fashion pages, while bachata's Romeo Santos, born Anthony Santos, stands among the best-selling artists in Latin music. Brazil went one better and put the lovers on a plate: Romeu e Julieta is the beloved dessert of cheese with goiabada, the tragedy resolved, at last, in guava. A pilgrim's noun, a lover's name, a dessert with a happy ending: the story depends on who tells it.
On record since at least 1321: Romeo di Villeneuve, Provençal minister, named Romeo in Dante's Paradiso VI.
How popular is Romeo around the world?
In the United States, 6,245 babies were named Romeo between 2020 and 2025. In Canada, 206 boys named Romeo were born in 2024, the 163rd most common name among boys that year.
Romeo is on the official records of the United States, Canada, Argentina, England and Wales, Scotland, Austria, South Australia, Mexico City, New Zealand, Ireland, France, Montevideo, Spain, Poland, Chile and Brazil.
United States
1 in 3,500
In the United States, 6,245 babies were named Romeo between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Romeo peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 1,800
In Canada, 206 boys named Romeo were born in 2024, the 163rd 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
1 in 2,200
In Argentina, 308 newborns were given the name Romeo in 2024.
share of that year’s name registrations
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
England and Wales
1 in 2,300
In England and Wales, 260 boys named Romeo were born in 2025, the 198th 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
Scotland
1 in 2,900
In Scotland, 16 boys named Romeo were registered in 2024, the 246th 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
Austria
1 in 3,000
In Austria, 25 boys named Romeo were born in 2025, the 233rd most common name among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
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)
South Australia
1 in 3,7002017
In South Australia, 5 boys were registered as Romeo in 2017.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Mexico City City
1 in 5,100
In Mexico City, there were 23 registrations of Romeo in 2022.
share of that year’s registrations in the city
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
New Zealand
1 in 5,200
In New Zealand, 11 boys named Romeo 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
Ireland
1 in 6,800
In Ireland, 8 boys named Romeo 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
France
1 in 7,200
In France, about 90 boys named Romeo were born in 2025, the 486th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. This registry counts each spelling separately; the figures above are for the exact spelling Romeo, and accented spellings are separate names. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Montevideo City
1 in 12,0002011
In Montevideo, 2 boys named Romeo were born in 2011, spelling variants counted together.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
Spain
1 in 14,000
In Spain, 3,143 residents are named Romeo, the 596th most common name among men, with a mean age of 12.3 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Poland
1 in 35,000
In Poland, 7 boys named Romeo were born in 2025, the 391st most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Chile
1 in 89,000
In Chile, 2 boys were registered as Romeo in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
The count never rose above 9 in a year, too few to chart.
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Brazil
1 in 110,000
At the 2022 census, 1,892 people in Brazil were named Romeo, ranked 5,288th, with a median age of 8.
Among people named Romeo living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 2010s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
The census also counted 687 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
Not on the record in Puerto Rico: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.
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 Romeo
Most people given the name Romeo 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.
Where Romeo travels
Filipino · A documented choice in Filipino families.
Keep exploring
The Romeo deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Romeo 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 Romeo fits with your family’s names and surname.
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