BabyNameScore

Matthew

MATH·yoo · English form of the Hebrew theophoric name Matityahu, via Greek and Latin · 2 syllables

Matthew is a familiar, currently well-used name.

Meaning: Gift of God / gift of Yahweh

87/100

Strong Practical Fit

Balanced across pronunciation, everyday use, lifetime fit and international use.

Name Profile

  1. Pronunciation & Spelling

    Clear, with one common misreading

    A documented English pronunciation is on file: MATH-yoo. Rarely mispronounced by native English speakers; non-native speakers occasionally stress the wrong syllable or soften the 'th'.

    91/100

  2. Everyday Use

    Low risk

    Shortens naturally in everyday use, with two established short forms.

    95/100

  3. Growing Up

    Strong lifetime fit

    Works comfortably across child and adult settings.

    82/100

  4. International Use

    Broad international fit

    Works cleanly across the assessed languages and writing systems.

    85/100

NAME DETAILS

COMMON FORMS
Matt
Matty
CLOSE SPELLINGS
Mathew
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS
Mateo
Matteo
Mathieu
Mateusz
Matvei
ORIGIN & HISTORY

About the name

Matthew carries one of the longest continuous usage histories of any name in this research batch: a Hebrew priestly-tradition name, made famous by an apostle/evangelist, absorbed into English through Norman and medieval channels, and sustained at high popularity in the English-speaking world for centuries, with a particularly sharp peak in the late 20th century.

  1. Matthew (English); ultimate source מַתִּתְיָהוּ (Matityahu, Hebrew). Gift of God / gift of Yahweh.
  2. Mythological and religious contextMatthew the Apostle, one of the Twelve Apostles of Jesus, traditionally identified with Levi the tax collector and credited as the author of the Gospel of Matthew in the Christian New Testament — the dominant religious/historical association for this name.
POPULARITY

Matthew over time

United States
#32RANK

Rank #32 gives national context, not a classroom forecast.

Widely recognized, but less suited to parents seeking rarity. Ranked #32 in the U.S., 2025.

SourceU.S. Social Security Administration · 2025 release

Pronunciation & Forms

SAY IT

MATH·yoo

STRESS ON THE FIRST SYLLABLE

COMMON FORMS
  • Matt
  • Matty
CLOSE SPELLINGS
  • Mathew
  • Mattewrare/error variant
OTHER-LANGUAGE FORMS
  • MateoES
  • MatteoIT
  • MathieuFR
  • MateuszPL
  • MatveiRU
  • Matthias/MattiasGermanic cognate lane
PRACTICAL LIFE

How This Name Lives

AT SCHOOL & DAY TO DAY

Reads as an unremarkable, well-established classic for a child in English-speaking countries, having been common for multiple generations without feeling dated in official rankings.

INTO ADULTHOOD

Extremely well-established in adult professional and cultural contexts given more than half a century of consistent top-50 US usage and centuries of prior use in Christian Europe.

Cultural Footprint

Functions as a default 'classic' English Christian name; strongly linked to Western Christian religious and cultural tradition rather than any single national or ethnic identity marker.

TRACEABLE ORIGIN
  1. Matthew C. Perry (1794–1858)Era

Community Impressions

Matthew is inseparable in English-speaking culture from Matthew the Apostle and Evangelist, traditional author of the first Gospel in the New Testament — a religious-canon association shared by very few other names in this SSA-300 set, and one that has anchored the name's popularity across centuries rather than a single modern pop-culture moment.

How this name is commonly received · not used in the score

More about Matthew

FORMALITY

Formal form is Matthew; informal short forms (Matt) are extremely well established and carry no stigma in professional settings.

Names around it

MateoMatteoMatthias
EDITORIAL SYNTHESIS

The Decision

Matthew is spelled without unusual letter patterns, and it holds up in everyday use. Surname-dependent compatibility remains unassessed until a surname is added.

STRENGTH

A documented English pronunciation is on file. Uses standard characters that systems widely handle cleanly.

BEST FIT

Everyday Use is the strongest-scoring part of this name — no obvious nickname traps, rhymes, or initial issues detected.

FULL-NAME CHECK

See how it works with a surname.

Matthew