MATTHEW  

Gender: M
Origin: Hebrew
Meaning: "gift of God"

Popularity in 2008: #10

The third most popular boys' name in America throughout the 1980s and 90s, and still Number 10 (there were over seventeen thousand baby Matts per year), the New Testament Matthew is the epitome of the fashionable classic -- safe and sturdy, yet with a more engaging personality than John or James. It's so common by now, though, that parents are starting to seek fresher choices, like its variations Matthias and Mateo.

Nicknames & Variations:
Matai, Matt, Mathias, Mathe, Matthews, Matty, Matek, Mattie, Matheson, Mathian, Matvey, Matfei, Matro, Matthaus, Matthaios, Mathew, Matthaeus, Mathieson, Mayhew, Mattheus, Matyas

International Variations:
Matei (Bulgarian) Mateu (Catalan) Matej, Matyás (Czech) Mathies, Mads (Danish) Matthijs (Dutch) Matti (Finnish) Mathieu (French) Mattäus (German) Matthaiso (Greek) Mátyás, Matyi, Matyo (Hungarian) Maitias (Irish Gaelic) Matteo, Mattia (Italian) Matteus, Mats (Norwegian) Maciej, Mateusz (Polish) Mateus (Portuguese) Matheiu (Romanian) Motya, Matvei, Motka (Russian) Matha, Mata (Scottish Gaelic) Matias, Matheo, Mateo, Matejo, Teo (Spanish) Matvi (Ukrainian)

Matthew is being discussed in our message boards:

• Sibling for Tabitha Rachel - HELP!!!!
• Lemon's Boy Name Ideas
• Many Multiples BNG
• Picture Game :)
• My list of potentials. Your thoughts?

Read Nameberry blog posts about Matthew:

• ROYAL NAMES: Beyond Elizabeth & William
• THE LOST LETTER "P": Whatever happenned to Peter, Paul and Paula?
• GOLDEN GIRL NAMES
• CELEBRITY BABY NAMES: The Hottest Trends Right Now
• NEW YORK CITY NAMES: Sophia and Jayden top the new list