Bette is a girl name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Bette means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Bette across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Bette has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Bette is a girl name of Hebrew origin meaning “my God is an oath”. A pet form of Elizabeth.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 34,919 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 13 births |
Counts come from official national birth-registration statistics: U.S. Social Security Administration, England & Wales (Office for National Statistics), Scotland (National Records of Scotland), Northern Ireland (NISRA), Ireland (Central Statistics Office) and New Zealand (Dept. of Internal Affairs). Coverage spans differ, so totals aren't directly comparable across countries.
Babies named Bette per year, United States (1896 to 2025). United States peaked in 1924 (1,742/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2015 (4/yr).
Bette has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1924, when it ranked #257 nationally (given to 1,742 babies that year).
Betty · Bettie · Bettye · Pete · Pattie · Betti · Beata · Beddie
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