# Timothy (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/timothy/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | boys |
| Origin | Greek |
| Meaning | “to honour”, “god” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈtɪməθi/, 3 syllables |
| Nicknames | Timmy, Timmo, Timbo |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |
| US babies named this | 1,088,520 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 1,084,192 / 4,328 (0% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 6,296, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Middle French Timothée, from Latin Tīmotheus, from Ancient Greek Τῑμόθεος (Tīmótheos), from τῑμάω (tīmáō, “to honour”) + θεός (theós, “god”).

## What it means

Timothy is grouped under god and noble.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | 15 | 6,697 |
| 1999 | 14 | 7,208 |
| 2000 | 9 | 10,683 |
| 2001 | 13 | 8,163 |
| 2002 | 9 | 11,035 |
| 2003 | 13 | 8,458 |
| 2004 | 33 | 4,276 |
| 2005 | 8 | 12,922 |
| 2006 | 5 | 19,845 |
| 2007 | 7 | 15,355 |
| 2008 | 6 | 17,334 |
| 2010 | 5 | 19,611 |
| 2012 | 5 | 19,317 |
| 2015 | 5 | 18,884 |
| 2016 | 5 | 18,648 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 3,233 | 123 |
| 2012 | 3,123 | 118 |
| 2013 | 3,068 | 124 |
| 2014 | 3,012 | 134 |
| 2015 | 2,802 | 147 |
| 2016 | 2,674 | 152 |
| 2017 | 2,420 | 163 |
| 2018 | 2,356 | 165 |
| 2019 | 2,092 | 188 |
| 2020 | 2,011 | 192 |
| 2021 | 1,923 | 199 |
| 2022 | 1,848 | 202 |
| 2023 | 1,747 | 211 |
| 2024 | 1,721 | 207 |
| 2025 | 1,734 | 203 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 148 | 298 |
| 2012 | 160 | 288 |
| 2013 | 149 | 299 |
| 2014 | 178 | 274 |
| 2015 | 132 | 348 |
| 2016 | 162 | 298 |
| 2017 | 137 | 347 |
| 2018 | 114 | 383 |
| 2019 | 135 | 336 |
| 2020 | 110 | 388 |
| 2021 | 113 | 385 |
| 2022 | 104 | 407 |
| 2023 | 100 | 396 |
| 2024 | 109 | 382 |
| 2025 | 96 | 418 |

## In other languages

- Armenian: Տիմոթեոս
- Bulgarian: Тимотей
- Catalan: Timoteu
- Chinese: 蒂莫西
- Czech: Timoteus
- Danish: Tim
- Dutch: Timoteüs
- Estonian: Timo
- Finnish: Timo
- French: Timothée
- Georgian: ტიმოთე
- German: Tim, Timo
- Greek: Τιμόθεος
- Hungarian: Timótheosz, Timóteus, Timót
- Icelandic: Tímóteus
- Indonesian: Timotius
- Irish: Tadhg
- Italian: Timoteo
- Japanese: テモテ
- Latin: Timotheus

## People named Timothy

- Timothy Dalton, British actor of stage, film and television
- Timothy Leary, American psychologist (1920–1996)
- Timothy Hutton, American actor and director
- Timothy Spall, English actor
- Timothy Snyder, American historian (born 1969)
- Timothy Olyphant, American actor
- Timothy McVeigh, American domestic anti-government terrorist (1968–2001)
- Timothy Weah, American soccer player
- Timothy Castagne, Belgian association football player
- Timothy Garton Ash, British historian and author
- Timothy Gowers, British mathematician
- Timothy Geithner, American central banker and politician

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.