Bear

Bear: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning
“bear”
Origin
English
Say it
BAIR · 1 syllable
Used for
Boys

From the English word for the animal, used as a modern given name or nickname. It may also echo the Old English byname Bera.

How popular is Bear?

202490.0 per million US babies
1880192019602000
Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Babies named Bear in 2024300

2024 rank#828 boys

Peak year2022

Total US babies since 18803,066

Bear is rising: use over the last five years is 3.7× what it was a decade earlier.

Names like Bear

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

  • JackGod is gracious · English
  • Hudsonson of Hudd · English
  • Jacksonson of Jack · English
  • Cartercart driver · English
  • Wyattbrave in war · English
  • Maverickindependent person · English
  • Masonstoneworker · English
  • Graysonson of the steward · English

Bear questions

What does the name Bear mean?

Bear means "bear". It comes from English. From the English word for the animal, used as a modern given name or nickname. It may also echo the Old English byname Bera.

Is Bear a boy or girl name?

Bear is mainly a boy's name in US records (100% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Bear?

300 US babies were named Bear in 2024. Its peak year was 2022.

How do you pronounce Bear?

Bear is usually pronounced BAIR.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.