girl's name
Winnie
WIN-ee
- Origin Welsh
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 6
- Popularity Top 1000 (E&W)
- Births on record 31,363
the United States
#475
2025 births
Winnie is a girl's name of Welsh origin meaning "blessed reconciliation." It is a pet form of Winifred, from the Welsh Gwenfrewi, and is also used as a short form of Winona and Edwina.
- Winnie is a name of Welsh origin.
- Peaked in US records in 2025, when 646 babies were given the name.
- It has been rising over the past decade in US records.
- Today about 1 in 1,267 babies in England and Wales is given this name.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Winnie over time
Births per decade in the United States, 1880s to 2020s. Winnie is more popular in England and Wales — see the country table below. 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 | 1,006 |
| 1890s | 2,150 |
| 1900s | 2,201 |
| 1910s | 3,998 |
| 1920s | 4,375 |
| 1930s | 3,008 |
| 1940s | 2,009 |
| 1950s | 1,046 |
| 1960s | 574 |
| 1970s | 422 |
| 1980s | 424 |
| 1990s | 600 |
| 2000s | 746 |
| 2010s | 1,812 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 2,966 |
What Winnie means
Winnie means blessed peacemaking, inherited from Winifred. The Welsh elements are gwen, blessed, holy or white, and frewi, reconciliation — so the name concerns making peace rather than being peaceful.
Where Winnie comes from
Winnie shortens Winifred, an English reshaping of the Welsh Gwenfrewi, from gwen, blessed or white, and frewi, reconciliation. Saint Gwenfrewi, or Winefride, is the seventh-century Welsh saint whose holy well at Holywell in Flintshire has been a pilgrimage site for over a thousand years — the oldest continuously visited in Britain. The name was reinforced by association with the Old English Wynn, joy, though that is a separate word. Winnie-the-Pooh, named by A. A. Milne after a bear at London Zoo called Winnipeg, is the name's most famous bearer and is male.
Winnie in use
Our data shows Winnie peaking in 2025 — still climbing — at 117 in England and Wales. It first appears in our records in 1880. Winifred, its parent name, remains almost unused, so the pet form has entirely outlived it, as with Cleo and Cleopatra.
How popular is Winnie?
In 2025, Winnie was given to 416 babies in England and Wales, ranking #117 that year. It is well established in England and Wales.
Where Winnie is used
England and Wales figures withhold any name given to fewer than three babies in a year. The historical chart above uses US records, the only series running back to 1880. Data & sources.
Names that peaked alongside Winnie
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents who like Winnie also like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Winnie over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
1 nickname for Winnie
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.
Winnie 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 Winnie
Names from the same era that won't rhyme or share an initial with Winnie — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common questions about Winnie
What does the name Winnie mean?
Winnie means "blessed reconciliation," from the Welsh gwen, blessed, and frewi, reconciliation.
Is Winnie short for Winifred?
Traditionally yes, though Winifred is now almost unused while Winnie is a British top-120 name.
Is Winnie-the-Pooh named after the name?
After a bear at London Zoo called Winnipeg, whom A. A. Milne's son was fond of. The fictional bear is male.
How popular is the name Winnie?
In 2025, Winnie was given to 416 babies in England and Wales, ranking #117 that year. It is well established in England and Wales.
Is Winnie a girl's or a boy's name?
Winnie is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Winnie?
Winnie has 2 syllables.
When was Winnie most popular?
Winnie peaked in 2025, when 646 babies were given the name. It has been rising over the past decade.
What are the nicknames for Winnie?
Winnie is usually shortened to Win.
Is Winnie a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Winnie currently ranks #117 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.