boy's name
Mateo
mah-TAY-oh
- Origin Hebrew
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 3
- Letters 5
- Popularity Top 100 (US)
- Births on record 160,271
the United States
#8
2025 births
Mateo is a boy's name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift of Yahweh," the Spanish form of Matthew. It descends from the Hebrew Mattityahu by way of Greek and Latin, and names one of the four gospel writers of the New Testament.
- Mateo is a name of Hebrew origin.
- Peaked in 2024, when 11,355 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 300 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1904.
- 3 syllables, with the stress on syllable 2.
Mateo over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1900s 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 |
|---|---|
| 1900s | 5 |
| 1910s | 63 |
| 1920s | 162 |
| 1930s | 102 |
| 1940s | 112 |
| 1950s | 116 |
| 1960s | 102 |
| 1970s | 285 |
| 1980s | 370 |
| 1990s | 2,010 |
| 2000s | 10,490 |
| 2010s | 50,634 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 62,327 |
What Mateo means
Mateo means "gift of Yahweh," built from the Hebrew mattan, meaning gift, joined to a shortened form of the divine name. It belongs to the same family of devotional Hebrew names as Nathaniel, which expresses the same idea using a different word for God.
Where Mateo comes from
Mateo is the Spanish form of Matthew, from the Hebrew Mattityahu, meaning gift of Yahweh. The name passed into Greek as Matthaios and into Latin as Matthaeus, from which the Romance languages produced Mateo in Spanish, Matteo in Italian, and Mathieu in French. Its spread across Christian Europe follows the standing of Matthew the Evangelist, a tax collector called as one of the twelve apostles and traditionally credited with the first gospel. Mateo has become widely used in English-speaking countries in recent decades, reflecting the growing presence of Spanish naming traditions.
How popular is Mateo?
In 2025, Mateo was given to 11,057 babies in the United States, ranking #8 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Where Mateo 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.
How Mateo is spelled
Birth registers count each spelling separately, so every one has its own ranking.
| Spelling | What it is | Births on record |
|---|---|---|
| Matéo | Matéo is Mateo written with an acute accent, used in France, where it ranks #179. | 19,745 |
| Matëo | Matëo is a rare spelling of Mateo, written with a diaeresis and recorded about 20 times, mostly in France. | 20 |
Names that peaked alongside Mateo
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Mateo also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Mateo over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
3 nicknames for Mateo
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.
Mateo 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 Mateo
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Mateo — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Mateo
What does the name Mateo mean?
Mateo means "gift of Yahweh," from the Hebrew Mattityahu.
Is Mateo the Spanish form of Matthew?
Yes. Mateo is Spanish, Matteo is Italian, and both correspond to the English Matthew.
Is Mateo a biblical name?
Yes — it corresponds to Matthew, one of the twelve apostles and a gospel writer.
How popular is the name Mateo?
In 2025, Mateo was given to 11,057 babies in the United States, ranking #8 that year. It is one of the most popular names in the United States.
Is Mateo a girl's or a boy's name?
Mateo is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Mateo?
Mateo has 3 syllables.
When was Mateo most popular?
Mateo peaked in 2024, when 11,355 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Mateo?
Mateo is usually shortened to Mat, Teo and Matt.
Is Mateo a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Mateo currently ranks #8 in the United States. It has been rising over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.