Pete is a boy name with a classic feel, drawn from real birth records. Below you'll find what Pete means and where it comes from, plus how many babies have been named Pete across the United States, UK, Ireland and New Zealand, how popular Pete has been over the decades, and the year it peaked.
Pete is a boy name of Greek origin meaning “rock, stone”. A short form of Peter.
| Country | Births on record |
|---|---|
| United States since 1880 | 43,700 births |
| England & Wales since 1996 | 41 births |
| Ireland since 1964 | 6 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 Pete per year, United States (1880 to 2025). United States peaked in 1959 (767/yr) · England & Wales peaked in 2007 (5/yr) · Ireland peaked in 2010 (3/yr).
Pete has been a fairly common baby name in the United States. It was most common in 1959, when it ranked #617 nationally (given to 767 babies that year).
Pat · Bette · Bettie · Bettye · Pattie · Pet · Pati
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