Pete

Pete: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “rock, stone”
Origin: Greek
Say it: PEET · 1 syllable
Used for: Boys

Short form of Peter, from Greek Petros. Pete is a familiar English diminutive rather than the original formal form.

English names Names meaning earth Names meaning strength Short names Classic names

How popular is Pete?

202412.0 per million US babies

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.

Compare with another name

Babies named Pete in 202440

2024 rank#3,036 boys

Peak year1884

Total US babies since 188043,644

Pete is steady now but far below its 1884 peak.

Names like Pete

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Peterrock; stone · Greek
Pedrorock; stone · Spanish
Piercerock · English
Pierrerock; stone · French
Petrarock, stone · Greek
Piersonson of Piers · English
Theodoregift of God · Greek
Sebastianfrom Sebaste · Greek

Pete questions

What does the name Pete mean?

Pete means "rock, stone". It comes from Greek. Short form of Peter, from Greek Petros. Pete is a familiar English diminutive rather than the original formal form.

Is Pete a boy or girl name?

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

How popular is Pete?

40 US babies were named Pete in 2024. Its peak year was 1884.

How do you pronounce Pete?

Pete is usually pronounced PEET.

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.