How popular is the baby name Matthew in the United States right now? How popular was it historically? Use the popularity graph and data table below to find out! Plus, see all the blog posts that mention the name Matthew.

The graph will take a few moments to load. (Don't worry, it shouldn't take 9 months!) If it's taking too long, try reloading the page.


Popularity of the baby name Matthew


Posts that mention the name Matthew

Acts of the Apostles…as a baby name

Here’s a story I’ve spotted a couple of times:

A couple of centuries ago, Thomas and Elizabeth Pegden of Kent, England, had four sons named Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Then they had a fifth son. They were out of evangelists, so what did they name baby #5? Acts of the Apostles, after the next book in the New Testament.

Is it a true story?

Sort of.

A man named Actsapostles Pegden was indeed born in Kent back in 1795. (He went by the nickname “Actsy.” He married in 1826, and passed away in 1865.)

And his parents were named Thomas and Elizabeth Pegden.

And he did have at least four older brothers.

But the brothers I’ve found were named Thomas (b. 1787), Philip (b. 1789), Isaac (b. 1791) and Christopher (b. 1793) — not Matthew, Mark, Luke and John.

So how did he get his name?

I’m not sure.

The only two other people I’ve come across with this name — Acts of the Apostles Kennett (b. 1833), son of Richard and Phoebe Kennett, and Acts of the Apostles Tong (b. 1850), son of Henry and Mary Tong — were both born in Kent, just like Actsy. This makes me think the name has more to do with regional religious fervor than anything else.

Sources:

  • “A Curious Christian Name.” New York Times 16 Apr. 1899: 24.
  • Bardsley, Charles Wareing Endell. Curiosities of Puritan Nomenclature. London: Chatto & Windus, 1897.
  • “‘Acts-Apostles’ as a Name.” Notes and Queries 3 Mar. 1866: 175.

Popular baby names in British Columbia (Canada), 2009

Yesterday, British Columbia’s Ministry of Health Services released the province’s top baby names of 2009. Here are the top ten boy names:

  1. Ethan (300 babies)
  2. Liam (286)
  3. Jacob (225)
  4. Logan (217)
  5. Noah (205)
  6. Matthew (203)
  7. Lucas (197)
  8. Alexander (195)
  9. Benjamin (195)
  10. Nathan (187)

And here are the top ten girl names:

  1. Olivia (243 babies)
  2. Emma (228)
  3. Sophia (226)
  4. Ava (223)
  5. Emily (201)
  6. Isabella (184)
  7. Chloe (183)
  8. Lily (152)
  9. Hannah (151)
  10. Ella (145)

Out of the nearly 45,000 babies born in British Columbia last year, about 23,000 were male and about 22,000 were female.

Source: Ethan, Olivia most popular baby names in B.C.

Baby name mash-ups: Abdrew, Jeffifer, Ryatt, Tiffanique

Here are some oddball baby names I found while scanning the SSA’s baby name lists. They look like creative combinations of other names. (My guesses as to what those “other names” might be are in parentheses.)

Boy names:

Girl names:

Which is your favorite? (Mine is Franchester!)

Have you come across any other baby name mash-ups recently?

P.S. Don’t forget Craphonso. :)

[Last update: 5/2019]

Popular baby names in Malta, 2009

Flag of Malta
Flag of Malta

The last time I wrote about popular baby names in Malta was two years ago. It’s time for an update!

A total of 4,143 babies were born in Malta in 2009. (In 2006, the number was 3,885.) These were the most popular baby names last year:

Girl Names

  1. Maria/Mariah/Marie, 82 baby girls
  2. Elena/Ylenia/Ella, 79
  3. Christina/Kristina/Krista, 63
  4. Eliza/Elizabeth/Lisa, 52
  5. Amy/Aimee, 49
  6. Julia/Gulia, 45
  7. Maya/Maia, 39 [tie]
  8. Emma, 39 [tie]
  9. Martina, 33
  10. Rihanna/Rhiana, 32
  11. Jasmine/Yasmine 31
  12. Keira, 29
  13. Mikela/Michaela, 28
  14. Jade 27
  15. Hannah/Anna/Ann, 26
  16. Nicole, 25 [3-way tie]
  17. Mireille, 25 [3-way tie]
  18. Hailey/Hayley, 25 [3-way tie]
  19. Sarah/Sara, 24
  20. Emilia, 22 [tie]
  21. Lea, 22 [tie]
  22. Thea, 20
  23. Shania, 18 [4-way tie]
  24. Katrina/Kate, 18 [4-way tie]
  25. Amber, 18 [4-way tie]
  26. Kailey/Kayleigh, 18 [4-way tie]
  27. Faith, 17 [tie]
  28. Laura, 17 [tie]

Boy Names

  1. Luke/Luca, 92 baby boys
  2. Matthew/Matthias/Matteo, 84
  3. Jake, 59
  4. Aiden, 53
  5. Jaden/Jayden, 51
  6. John/Giovanni/Jean, 48
  7. Kaiden/Kayden, 47
  8. Michael/Miguel/Mikele, 46
  9. Nicholas/Nick, 42
  10. Isaac/Izaak, 39
  11. Nathan, 38
  12. Liam/William, 36 [tie]
  13. Gabriel, 36 [tie]
  14. Benjamin/Ben, 35
  15. Alexander/Alessandro/Alejandro, 34 [tie]
  16. Zachary/Zak, 34 [tie]
  17. James, 33 [tie]
  18. Daniel, 33 [tie]
  19. Denzel/Danzil, 31
  20. Keiran, 29
  21. Andre/Andrew/Andrea, 26 [tie]
  22. Sven, 26 [tie]
  23. Julian, 25
  24. Kyle, 24 [tie]
  25. Joseph/Giuseppe/Beppe, 24 [tie]

You’ll notice that Malta still lumps variants together. (They even lump non-variants like Elena and Ella together.) I’m not a big fan of this method because when groupings change from year to year, comparisons become impossible.

Malta also seems to have some issues with spelling. Aidan and Kieran became Aiden and Keiran between 2006 and 2009, for instance. And I wonder if “Gulia” wasn’t supposed to be spelled “Giulia.” (Though I do like the fact that there’s a “Julia/Gulia” grouping. Very Wedding Singer-esque.)

But it’s interesting stuff nonetheless. I’m especially intrigued by all the -ayden names on the boys’ list. (Worldwide phenomenon, anyone?)

If you want to see more from Malta, the top baby names of 2008, 2007, 2004/2005, 2003 and 2002 are available for download.

Source: National Statistics Office – Malta

Image: Adapted from Flag of Malta (public domain)