boy's name
Gustavo
goos-TAH-voh
- Origin Italian
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 7
- Popularity Top 1000 (US)
- Births on record 41,311
the United States
#626
2025 births
Gustavo has no settled meaning, and the two accounts disagree on the language — a Norse staff of the Geats, or a Slavic name reshaped by Swedish, and neither has carried the field. Gustav Vasa took the Swedish throne in 1523.
- Gustavo is a name of Italian origin.
- Peaked in 2000, when 1,295 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 7,417 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1911.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Gustavo over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 129 |
| 1920s | 317 |
| 1930s | 366 |
| 1940s | 444 |
| 1950s | 1,082 |
| 1960s | 1,897 |
| 1970s | 3,027 |
| 1980s | 4,881 |
| 1990s | 9,028 |
| 2000s | 11,027 |
| 2010s | 5,659 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 2,604 |
What Gustavo means
Gustavo means staff of the Geats on the commonest reading. A Slavic derivation is equally argued, which would make the name unrelated to Norse entirely.
Where Gustavo comes from
Gustavo is the Italian, Spanish and Portuguese form of Gustav, whose origin is disputed. One account reads it as the Old Norse Gautstafr — the staff or support of the Geats, the people of southern Sweden that Beowulf belongs to. The other derives it from the Slavic Gostislav, guest-glory, reshaped by Swedish. Gustav Vasa took the Swedish throne in 1523 and made the name royal, which is why it spread across Europe.
Gustavo in use
Gustavo peaked in the United States in 2000, when 1,295 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now ranks 626th in the United States on 447 births, 1373rd in France on 25 and 4039th in England and Wales on 5, across 41,311 lifetime births in three of the seven markets we track. Our records carry it from 1911.
How popular is Gustavo?
In 2025, Gustavo was given to 447 babies in the United States, ranking #626 that year. It is a well-established, commonly used name.
Where Gustavo 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 Gustavo
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Gustavo also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Gustavo over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
2 nicknames for Gustavo
Each one is a name in its own right — the figure underneath is how it is doing today, so you can see which short forms are rising and which have faded.
Gustavo 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 Gustavo
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Gustavo — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Gustavo
What does the name Gustavo mean?
Unsettled — staff of the Geats, or a reshaped Slavic Gostislav.
Who were the Geats?
A people of southern Sweden. Beowulf is one of them.
Why is Gustav a royal name?
Gustav Vasa took the Swedish throne in 1523.
How popular is Gustavo?
626th in the United States, down from a 2000 peak of 1,295 births.
Is Gustavo a girl's or a boy's name?
Gustavo is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Gustavo?
Gustavo has 3 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Gustavo?
Gustavo is usually shortened to Gus and Tavo.
Is Gustavo a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Gustavo currently ranks #626 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.