unisex name
Bobbie
BOB-ee
- Origin English
- Gender Unisex
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 109,768
Northern Ireland
#440
2024 births
Bobbie is 83 percent female in our records and England and Wales ranks it 523rd on 110 births — far above the United States at 2072nd, reversing what an American nickname-name would usually do.
- Bobbie is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1934, when 2,850 babies were given the name.
- Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 34,535 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1883.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Bobbie over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, still in progress — it covers 2020 to 2025, not a full ten years.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1880s | 60 |
| 1890s | 174 |
| 1900s | 500 |
| 1910s | 2,130 |
| 1920s | 10,595 |
| 1930s | 25,707 |
| 1940s | 19,230 |
| 1950s | 14,403 |
| 1960s | 10,454 |
| 1970s | 11,527 |
| 1980s | 7,009 |
| 1990s | 3,190 |
| 2000s | 1,088 |
| 2010s | 570 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 412 |
What Bobbie means
Bobbie means bright fame, carried from Robert or Roberta. The Germanic joins a word for fame to one meaning bright, so both halves reinforce a single idea.
Where Bobbie comes from
Bobbie is a pet form of Robert and Roberta, from the Germanic Hrodebert — hrod, fame, joined to beraht, bright. The B is a medieval English rhyming substitution, the same process that turned Will into Bill and Rick into Dick, and it is one of the more distinctive habits of English naming that other European languages largely did not share. The -ie spelling carries most of the female use, while Bobby stays predominantly male.
Bobbie in use
Bobbie peaked in the United States in 1934, when 2,850 babies were registered, and our data marks it stable rather than falling. It now ranks 440th in Northern Ireland on 3 births, 523rd in England and Wales on 110, 565th in Scotland on 5, 931st in Ireland and 2072nd in the United States on 96, across 109,768 lifetime births in six of the seven markets we track. About 83 percent of recorded births are female.
How popular is Bobbie?
In 2025, Bobbie was given to 96 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Bobbie is used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Bobbie
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Bobbie also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Bobbie over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
Bobbie in other languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling names for Bobbie
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Bobbie — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Bobbie
What does the name Bobbie mean?
Bright fame, carried from Robert or Roberta.
Why is Bob short for Robert?
Medieval English rhyming nicknames — the same process that made Bill from Will and Dick from Rick.
Is Bobbie a girls' name?
Mostly — 83 percent of the births in our records are female, while Bobby stays predominantly male.
Where is Bobbie most used?
England and Wales at 523rd, far above the United States at 2072nd.
How popular is the name Bobbie?
In 2025, Bobbie was given to 96 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
How many syllables are in Bobbie?
Bobbie has 2 syllables.
When was Bobbie most popular?
Bobbie peaked in 1934, when 2,850 babies were given the name. Its usage has held steady over the past decade.
Is Bobbie a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Bobbie currently ranks #440 in the United States. Its usage has held steady over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.