Tate
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Meaning
surname, from Old Norse "teitr", "cheerful"
The story
Tate is a Viking smile hiding in an English surname: the root is Old Norse teitr, cheerful, glad, which makes it one of the few one-syllable boys' names whose meaning is an emotion. As a first name it idled for most of a century, under 300 a decade into the 1960s, then about 820 in the 1970s, a dip in the 1980s, and then a four-decade climb: 3,100 in the 1990s, 6,900 in the 2000s, 7,600 in the 2010s, and already 9,400 so far this decade, past the full 2010s with years to run. In our records it goes to boys about 27,400 to 1,600. It rides the one-syllable surname current with Hayes and Brooks, and for gallery-minded families the London art museums echo it for free. A name meaning cheerful that never shouts: the understatement is the point, and the record suggests America has finally noticed.
How popular is Tate around the world?
In the United States, 9,366 babies were named Tate between 2020 and 2025. In South Australia, 13 boys were registered as Tate in 2017.
Tate is on the official records of the United States, South Australia, New Zealand, Canada, England and Wales, Scotland and Brazil.
United States
1 in 2,300
In the United States, 9,366 babies were named Tate between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Tate peaked in the 2020s.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
South Australia
1 in 1,4002017
In South Australia, 13 boys were registered as Tate 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 1,500
In New Zealand, 38 boys named Tate 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
Canada
1 in 2,200
In Canada, 149 boys named Tate were born in 2024, the 222nd 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)
England and Wales
1 in 3,700
In England and Wales, 152 boys named Tate were born in 2025, the 299th 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 6,500
In Scotland, 7 boys named Tate were registered in 2024, the 432nd most common name among boys that year.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
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
Brazil
At the 2022 census, 30 people in Brazil were named Tate, ranked 94,398th, with a median age of 26.
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
Ireland
last on record 2024
Tate is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 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
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 the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). 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 Tate
Most people given the name Tate 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 Tate · Names that go with Tate · Middle names for Tate · Short names · Nickname-proof names
The Tate deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Tate 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 Tate fits with your family’s names and surname.
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