Teddy
Teddy is given to both girls and boys: 56 girls and 301 boys were given it in 2025 (#2,994 among girls’ names and #823 among boys’, #1,489 among all names counting both); 35,402 Americans have been recorded with it since 1890 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 20,300 Americans named Teddy and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (57% of everyone recorded); the median is 59 years old and half are between 39 and 71.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Teddy by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Teddy mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Teddy is “a diminutive of the male given names Edward and Theodore, or of their diminutives Ted and Tedd.”
/ˈtɛdi/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Teddy?
#823 among boys’ names, 2025
Teddy rose from #1,716 in 2015 to #823 in 2025 among boys’ names; its share of boys born rose from 0.05 to 0.18 per 1,000.
637 babies in 1949, the peak
Teddy peaked in 1949, when 637 babies were given it (613 boys, #264 among boys’ names). The 357 births of 2025 (girls and boys) are 56% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 301 | #823 | 0.18 |
| 2024 | 265 | #895 | 0.15 |
| 2023 | 222 | #996 | 0.13 |
| 2022 | 212 | #1,043 | 0.12 |
| 2021 | 169 | #1,169 | 0.10 |
| 2020 | 135 | #1,334 | 0.08 |
| 2019 | 121 | #1,449 | 0.07 |
| 2018 | 99 | #1,647 | 0.05 |
| 2017 | 97 | #1,641 | 0.05 |
| 2016 | 84 | #1,808 | 0.04 |
Every recorded year (129)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 boys |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 91 | #1,716 | 0.05 |
| 2014 | 72 | #1,994 | 0.04 |
| 2013 | 65 | #2,087 | 0.03 |
| 2012 | 63 | #2,150 | 0.03 |
| 2011 | 69 | #1,997 | 0.04 |
| 2010 | 69 | #2,004 | 0.04 |
| 2009 | 80 | #1,848 | 0.04 |
| 2008 | 73 | #1,966 | 0.04 |
| 2007 | 73 | #1,944 | 0.04 |
| 2006 | 78 | #1,785 | 0.04 |
| 2005 | 77 | #1,736 | 0.04 |
| 2004 | 68 | #1,827 | 0.03 |
| 2003 | 79 | #1,607 | 0.04 |
| 2002 | 76 | #1,604 | 0.04 |
| 2001 | 86 | #1,446 | 0.04 |
| 2000 | 89 | #1,403 | 0.05 |
| 1999 | 96 | #1,279 | 0.05 |
| 1998 | 91 | #1,316 | 0.05 |
| 1997 | 116 | #1,091 | 0.06 |
| 1996 | 129 | #976 | 0.07 |
| 1995 | 95 | #1,187 | 0.05 |
| 1994 | 120 | #1,011 | 0.06 |
| 1993 | 121 | #984 | 0.06 |
| 1992 | 127 | #951 | 0.06 |
| 1991 | 151 | #848 | 0.07 |
| 1990 | 165 | #788 | 0.08 |
| 1989 | 163 | #777 | 0.08 |
| 1988 | 199 | #672 | 0.10 |
| 1987 | 185 | #674 | 0.10 |
| 1986 | 187 | #654 | 0.10 |
| 1985 | 149 | #725 | 0.08 |
| 1984 | 160 | #687 | 0.09 |
| 1983 | 195 | #613 | 0.11 |
| 1982 | 220 | #582 | 0.12 |
| 1981 | 241 | #544 | 0.13 |
| 1980 | 251 | #542 | 0.14 |
| 1979 | 291 | #486 | 0.17 |
| 1978 | 244 | #527 | 0.15 |
| 1977 | 287 | #477 | 0.17 |
| 1976 | 289 | #461 | 0.18 |
| 1975 | 277 | #482 | 0.18 |
| 1974 | 270 | #486 | 0.17 |
| 1973 | 269 | #481 | 0.17 |
| 1972 | 333 | #435 | 0.21 |
| 1971 | 372 | #416 | 0.21 |
| 1970 | 377 | #422 | 0.20 |
| 1969 | 448 | #371 | 0.25 |
| 1968 | 470 | #357 | 0.27 |
| 1967 | 451 | #352 | 0.26 |
| 1966 | 512 | #334 | 0.29 |
| 1965 | 524 | #329 | 0.28 |
| 1964 | 556 | #332 | 0.28 |
| 1963 | 548 | #336 | 0.27 |
| 1962 | 571 | #330 | 0.28 |
| 1961 | 609 | #318 | 0.29 |
| 1960 | 591 | #321 | 0.28 |
| 1959 | 574 | #324 | 0.27 |
| 1958 | 565 | #324 | 0.27 |
| 1957 | 568 | #322 | 0.26 |
| 1956 | 562 | #313 | 0.27 |
| 1955 | 486 | #336 | 0.24 |
| 1954 | 477 | #330 | 0.23 |
| 1953 | 533 | #310 | 0.27 |
| 1952 | 540 | #308 | 0.28 |
| 1951 | 562 | #289 | 0.30 |
| 1950 | 549 | #289 | 0.31 |
| 1949 | 613 | #264 | 0.35 |
| 1948 | 538 | #296 | 0.31 |
| 1947 | 509 | #307 | 0.28 |
| 1946 | 553 | #272 | 0.34 |
| 1945 | 472 | #276 | 0.35 |
| 1944 | 505 | #265 | 0.37 |
| 1943 | 504 | #269 | 0.35 |
| 1942 | 516 | #261 | 0.37 |
| 1941 | 484 | #253 | 0.39 |
| 1940 | 451 | #263 | 0.39 |
| 1939 | 421 | #265 | 0.38 |
| 1938 | 449 | #256 | 0.40 |
| 1937 | 434 | #259 | 0.41 |
| 1936 | 431 | #259 | 0.42 |
| 1935 | 414 | #267 | 0.40 |
| 1934 | 457 | #253 | 0.44 |
| 1933 | 476 | #239 | 0.48 |
| 1932 | 462 | #252 | 0.44 |
| 1931 | 424 | #264 | 0.41 |
| 1930 | 417 | #278 | 0.38 |
| 1929 | 378 | #287 | 0.35 |
| 1928 | 388 | #286 | 0.35 |
| 1927 | 313 | #324 | 0.28 |
| 1926 | 311 | #324 | 0.28 |
| 1925 | 262 | #367 | 0.23 |
| 1924 | 292 | #344 | 0.26 |
| 1923 | 277 | #357 | 0.25 |
| 1922 | 233 | #394 | 0.21 |
| 1921 | 275 | #363 | 0.25 |
| 1920 | 238 | #387 | 0.22 |
| 1919 | 239 | #375 | 0.24 |
| 1918 | 260 | #362 | 0.26 |
| 1917 | 181 | #420 | 0.20 |
| 1916 | 146 | #476 | 0.16 |
| 1915 | 132 | #486 | 0.16 |
| 1914 | 80 | #561 | 0.12 |
| 1913 | 37 | #787 | 0.07 |
| 1912 | 55 | #544 | 0.13 |
| 1911 | 21 | #703 | 0.09 |
| 1910 | 23 | #619 | 0.12 |
| 1909 | 16 | #709 | 0.10 |
| 1908 | 12 | #819 | 0.08 |
| 1907 | 20 | #555 | 0.14 |
| 1906 | 17 | #584 | 0.13 |
| 1905 | 21 | #505 | 0.16 |
| 1904 | 17 | #562 | 0.13 |
| 1903 | 14 | #615 | 0.12 |
| 1902 | 11 | #734 | 0.09 |
| 1901 | 15 | #530 | 0.14 |
| 1900 | 16 | #646 | 0.11 |
| 1898 | 5 | #1,274 | 0.04 |
| 1897 | 7 | #933 | 0.06 |
| 1890 | 6 | #986 | 0.05 |
Ranks and shares: boys’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all boys SSA recorded that year.
Is Teddy a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 35,402 Americans recorded as Teddy, 5% are girls and 95% boys.
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Teddy: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Teddy, and how old are they?
20,300 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 57% of the 35,402 Americans ever recorded as Teddy. The median Teddy alive today is 59 years old; half are between 39 and 71.
The 2020 Census counted 19,310 people named Teddy (1,064 women and girls, 18,246 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 21,435 born in the U.S. The Census count is 10% below that prediction. Possible reasons: people who give a short form or another name to the Census, and a survival estimate that can run high.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 1,800 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 7,240 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 5,040 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 2,590 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 1,330 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 2,300 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Teddy born?
The states with the most babies named Teddy are New York, Texas and California, with 24% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, boys | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| New York | 2,335 | #743 | 0.8× |
| Texas | 2,287 | #1,006 | 1.0× |
| California | 2,125 | #1,009 | 0.8× |
| Tennessee | 1,529 | #634 | 1.9× |
| Illinois | 1,493 | #1,006 | 0.8× |
| Kentucky | 1,451 | not ranked | 2.0× |
| Ohio | 1,385 | #747 | 0.8× |
| North Carolina | 1,301 | #714 | 1.2× |
| Oklahoma | 1,221 | #613 | 2.2× |
| West Virginia | 1,218 | not ranked | 2.7× |
Where Teddy is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Teddy is most over-represented in West Virginia: since 1910 it was given 2.7 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among boys’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Teddy with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 2 names spelled alike, given to 37,941 babies since 1880, Teddy is the most given (93% of them). In 2025 it was given to 357 of their 403 babies (89%), again the most given.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Teddy
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Teddy and names like it
- Compare Teddy and TeddieBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1940sTeddy peaked in 1949.
- New York’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Teddy since 1910.
- The top names of 1949The year the most babies were named Teddy.
- The names of the Baby BoomersMost people named Teddy alive today were born 1946-1964.
- Names starting with TMost given first.