boy's name
Mathieu
ma-TYUH
- Origin French
- Gender Boy
- Syllables 2
- Letters 7
- Popularity Rare
- Births on record 170,606
Northern Ireland
#331
1998 births
Mathieu is the French form of Matthew, meaning gift of God. The single t is the French spelling and the double t the English, and the name ranks 416th in France against 5031st in the United States.
- Mathieu is a name of French origin.
- Peaked in France in 1986, when 6,910 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade in France.
- Today about 1 in 5,126 babies in France is given this name.
- First appears in birth records in 1900.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Mathieu over time
Births per decade in France, 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 | 1,620 |
| 1910s | 1,275 |
| 1920s | 1,210 |
| 1930s | 855 |
| 1940s | 620 |
| 1950s | 740 |
| 1960s | 2,200 |
| 1970s | 17,975 |
| 1980s | 58,080 |
| 1990s | 38,920 |
| 2000s | 22,055 |
| 2010s | 6,300 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,005 |
What Mathieu means
Mathieu means gift of God, or given by Yahweh. The Hebrew joins the divine name to a word meaning a gift, so it describes the child as something received.
Where Mathieu comes from
Mathieu is the French Matthew, from the Hebrew Mattityahu — mattan, a gift, joined to Yah, a form of the divine name. The apostle Matthew is named as a tax collector in his own gospel, which is the sort of detail authors do not usually volunteer about themselves. The Greek Maththaios gave the Latin Matthaeus and then the vernacular forms: Mathieu in French, Matteo in Italian, Mateo in Spanish and Matthew in English. Several unrelated names — Nathaniel, Theodore, Jonathan, Dorothy — mean the same thing in different languages.
Mathieu in use
Mathieu peaked in France in 1986, when 6,910 babies were registered, and is falling in our data. It now charts in three of the seven markets we track — 416th in France on 115 births, 1035th in Canada and 5031st in the United States on 20 — across 170,606 lifetime births. Our records carry it from 1900.
How popular is Mathieu?
In 2025, Mathieu was given to 115 babies in France, ranking #416 that year. It is a rare choice.
Where Mathieu is used
French counts are rounded to the nearest five and nothing below five is published, so these figures show the shape of the name's use rather than an exact tally. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Mathieu
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Mathieu also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Mathieu over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Mathieu
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.
Mathieu 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 Mathieu
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Mathieu — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Mathieu
What does the name Mathieu mean?
Gift of God — the Hebrew mattan, a gift, joined to Yah, the divine name.
Is it Mathieu or Matthieu?
Both are French; Mathieu with one t is the more common and the form our records carry.
Do other names mean gift of God?
Several — Nathaniel, Theodore, Jonathan and Dorothy all say the same thing in different languages.
How popular is Mathieu?
416th in France and 5031st in the United States.
Is Mathieu a girl's or a boy's name?
Mathieu is given almost entirely to boys in birth records.
How many syllables are in Mathieu?
Mathieu has 2 syllables.
What are the nicknames for Mathieu?
Mathieu is usually shortened to Matt.
Is Mathieu a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Mathieu currently ranks #416 in France. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.