Ted

Diminutive of Theodore or Edward
"gift of god; rich guard"

Ted Origin and Meaning

The name Ted is a boy's name meaning "gift of god; rich guard".

Like Ed, Eddie and Teddy, Ted is rarely used as an independent name – in the US, at least. In the UK, Eddie ranks just outside the Top 200, Teddy ranks just outside the Top 30, and Ted is a Top 200 pick.

With Theodore rising, Ted may have new life among parents who don't want to use the short form Theo. And TV's Ted Lasso makes it a quintessential nice guy name.

# 956 in the US

Ted Rank in US Top 1000

# 1491 on Nameberry

Ted Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Ted Popularity

Famous People Named Ted

  • Edward Moore "Ted" KennedyU.S. Senator from Massachusetts
  • Theodore "Ted" Roosevelt IIIU.S. politician and general; son of President Teddy Roosevelt
  • Edward Richard George "Ted" HeathBritish Prme Minister
  • Theodore Anthony "Ted" NugentAmerican rock musician
  • Ted Knight (born Tadeusz Wladyslaw Konopka)American actor
  • Theodore Samuel "Ted" WilliamsAmerican baseball player
  • Edward James "Ted" HughesEnglish poet
  • Edward Bridge "Ted" Danson IIIAmerican actor
  • Theodore Fulton "Ted" StevensU.S. Senator from Alaska
  • Theodore "Ted" Strickland; U.S. politician; 68th governor of Ohio
  • Theodore Tillman "Ted" Shackelford IIIAmerican actor
  • Ted JensenAmerican sound mastering engineer
  • Ted "Kid" Lewis (born Gershon Mendeloff)British boxer
  • Edward James Milton "Ted" Dwanebassist for English band Mumford & Sons
  • Rafael Edward "Ted" CruzCanadian,American U.S. Senator from Texas
  • Robert Edward "Ted" TurnerAmerican media mogul, founder of CNN
  • Edward James Martin "Ted" KoppelBritish,American TV journalist
  • Ted Mack (born William Edward Maguiness)American radio and TV host
  • Ted GowansCanadian guitarist of band Tegan & Sara
  • Ted FuAmerican YouTube filmmaker of Wong Fu Productions
  • Theodore "Ted" BundyAmerican serial killer

Ted in Pop Culture

  • Ted Baxtercharacter on "The Mary Tyler Moore Show;" played by Ted Knight
  • Ted Tonatecharacter from "Ace Attorney" game series
  • Theodore Evelyn "Ted" Mosbycharacter on TV's "How I Met Your Mother"
  • Ted Chaoughcharacter on TV's "Mad Men"
  • Ted Tonkscharacter in "Harry Potter" series.
  • Ted "Teddy" Lupincharacter from the Harry Potter series
  • Tedsmart,mouth teddy bear in 2012 movie of same name & the 2015 sequel "Ted 2"
  • Tayler Mark "Ted" Beenecharacter on TV series Oliver Beene
  • Kasane TedUTAU and brother of Kasane Teto
  • Ted Theodore Logancharacter in movie "Bill & Ted's Excellent Adventure"
  • Tedthe Generic Guy, character from the comic strip Dilbert
  • Tedgamekeeper of Lord Ralph Mayhew on British TV series The Fast Show
  • "Ted" 2001 novel by Tony DiTerlizzi and its main character
  • Ted Bucklandcharacter on TV's Scrubs
  • Father Ted Crillycharacter on British TV series Father Ted
  • Theodore Margaret "Ted" Crispcharacter on TV's Better Off Ted
  • Ted Lawsoncharacter on TV's Small Wonder
  • Ted Shawcharacter on TV's "Defying Gravity"
  • Theodore "Ted" Schmidtcharacter on TV's Queer as Folk
  • Theodore "Ted" Spraguecharacter on TV's Heroes
  • Ted TalbotSr., character on TV series Rectify
  • Ted Shackleford aka "The Man With the Yellow Hat"a character in the Curious George series
  • Ted Hopecharacter in movie "White House Down"
  • Ted Wilsonreoccurring character on TV's "Pretty Little Liars"
  • TED Talks (TechnologyEntertainment, Design), lecture series
  • Ted Wigginscharacter in the 2012 movie "The Lorax"