Teddy
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Meaning
diminutive of Theodore, 'gift of God'
The formal names behind Teddy
Teddy is an established short form of each of these names.
Theodore · Greek origin · gift of God
Edward · Germanic origin · wealthy guardian
How popular is Teddy around the world?
In the United States, 1,576 babies were named Teddy between 2020 and 2025. In England and Wales, 1,360 boys named Teddy were born in 2025, the 34th most common name among boys that year.
Teddy is on the official records of the United States, England and Wales, Ireland, Scotland, New Zealand, Canada, South Australia, France, Chile, Spain and Brazil.
United States
1 in 14,000
In the United States, 1,576 babies were named Teddy between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Teddy peaked in the 2020s. In US birth records Teddy has stayed between 808 and 5,637 births in every decade since the 1950s: a name everyone knows and few children get.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
England and Wales
1 in 430
In England and Wales, 1,360 boys named Teddy were born in 2025, the 34th 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 640
In Ireland, 84 boys named Teddy were born in 2025, the 69th 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. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
1 in 680
In Scotland, 67 boys named Teddy were registered in 2024, the 76th 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
New Zealand
1 in 3,600
In New Zealand, 16 boys named Teddy 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 8,700
In Canada, 37 boys named Teddy were born in 2024, the 720th 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)
South Australia
1 in 18,0002017
In South Australia, 1 boy was registered as Teddy in 2017.
The count never rose above 2 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
France
1 in 32,000
In France, about 20 boys named Teddy were born in 2025, ranked 1,479th 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. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
Chile
1 in 180,000
In Chile, 1 boy was registered as Teddy in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
share of that year’s name registrations
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
Spain
1 in 700,000
In Spain, 64 residents are named Teddy, ranked 11,925th among men, with a mean age of 37.1 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
Brazil
1 in 1M
At the 2022 census, 245 people in Brazil were named Teddy, ranked 21,979th, with a median age of 35.
Among people named Teddy living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1980s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
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
Montevideo City
last on record 1998
Teddy is not on the 2011 record for Montevideo, whose registry withholds nothing, so the spelling was not given there that year.
The count never rose above 4 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
Not on the record in Mexico City, Argentina, Puerto Rico and Poland: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
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 Teddy
People given the name Teddy in the United States span the generations: the middle half were born anywhere from 1950 to 1999. 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.
Keep exploring
The Teddy deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Teddy 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 Teddy fits with your family’s names and surname.
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