UK boy's name
Mateo
A masculine name of Spanish origin meaning "gift of God".
For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.
Mateo is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Mateo popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #178, with 282 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2023, with 323 births.
This profile covers 2,546 England and Wales registrations across 28 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.
The latest count is about 87% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 2,700 living people in the UK are called Mateo. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.
Key insights
- • Mateo ranked #178 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 282 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2023, when 323 boys were registered as Mateo.
- • Mateo ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #278 in 2024.
- • About 2,700 living people in the UK are estimated to have Mateo as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#178
2024
Births in 2024
282
Latest year
Peak year
2023
323 births
Estimated living
2,700
2026
Meaning
What does Mateo mean?
The name Mateo has its origins in the Hebrew name Mattityahu, which means "gift of God." It is the Spanish and Italian equivalent of the English name Matthew. The name was popularized by the New Testament figure, Saint Matthew, one of the twelve apostles of Jesus Christ and the author of the Gospel of Matthew.
Mateo is derived from the Hebrew word "mattath," meaning "gift," and the name of the Hebrew God, "Yahweh." The name was brought to Europe through the Roman Empire and the spread of Christianity. It became popular throughout the Mediterranean region, particularly in Italy and Spain.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Mateo can be found in the writings of the ancient Roman historian, Suetonius, who lived from around 69 to 122 AD. He referred to a Roman soldier named Mattheus who served under the Emperor Domitian.
In the Middle Ages, the name Mateo gained prominence with the rise of Christianity. Several notable figures bore this name, including Mateo Renaldo (1195-1262), an Italian jurist and scholar, and Mateo de Bassio (1420-1497), an Italian painter and architect.
During the Renaissance period, the name Mateo was associated with several influential figures, such as Mateo Ricci (1552-1610), an Italian Jesuit priest and one of the founding figures of the Catholic missions in China, and Mateo Alemán (1547-1615), a Spanish novelist and author of the picaresque novel "Guzmán de Alfarache."
In the 17th century, Mateo Vázquez de Leca (1564-1649), a Spanish statesman and secretary to King Philip III of Spain, played a significant role in the Spanish court. Another notable figure was Mateo Preti (1613-1699), an Italian Baroque painter known for his religious works and portraiture.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, several notable figures bore the name Mateo, including Mateo Seoane (1768-1809), a Spanish military officer and guerrilla leader during the Peninsular War against Napoleon's forces, and Mateo Máximo Guillermo Braulio (1774-1847), a Venezuelan military leader and hero of the Venezuelan War of Independence.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Mateo over time
The chart below shows babies named Mateo registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.
For Mateo, the clearest high point is 2023. The latest England and Wales figure is 282 births in 2024, compared with 323 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Mateo by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Mateo was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.
| Decade | Average rank | Total births | Years covered |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020s | #189 | 1,371 | 5 |
| 2010s | #503 | 903 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1037 | 247 | 10 |
| 1990s | #1771 | 25 | 3 |
Geography
Where Mateo is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Mateo. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.
Mateo ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #278 in 2024.
Across the UK
Mateo in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#290 in 2024
14 years of NRS records, 129 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#278 in 2024
7 years of NISRA records, 40 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Mateo
-
Mateo Lascelles
aristocrat; schoolchild
born 2013; son of Hon. Benjamin Lascelles and Carolina Velez Robledo
2013-
-
Mateo Joseph
association football player
Spanish association football player
2003-
Related
Names similar to Mateo
- Matthew 80,931
- Mohammed 74,321
- Muhammad 72,235
- Max 59,807
- Michael 47,075
- Mason 38,935
- Mohammad 25,910
- Morgan 15,994
- Muhammed 11,527
- Mark 11,336
- Marcus 11,257
- Maxwell 10,006
FAQ
Mateo: questions and answers
How popular is the name Mateo in the UK right now?
In 2024, Mateo was ranked #178 for boys in England and Wales, with 282 births registered.
When was Mateo most popular?
The peak year on record was 2023, with 323 babies registered as Mateo in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Mateo?
A masculine name of Spanish origin meaning "gift of God".
How many people are called Mateo in the UK?
A total of 2,546 babies have been registered as Mateo across the 28 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 129 more in Scotland and 40 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Mateo most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Mateo ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #278 in 2024. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.
Which records is this page based on?
The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.