UK boy's name
Matt
A masculine given name of English origin referring to Matthew.
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.
Matt is a boy's name in the UK records. People looking for Matt popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #5119, with 3 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 1998, with 64 births.
This profile covers 686 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 5% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 814 living people in the UK are called Matt. 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
- • Matt ranked #5119 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 3 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 1998, when 64 boys were registered as Matt.
- • Matt ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #415 in 2017.
- • About 814 living people in the UK are estimated to have Matt as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
Latest rank (E&W)
#5119
2024
Births in 2024
3
Latest year
Peak year
1998
64 births
Estimated living
814
2026
Meaning
What does Matt mean?
The given name Matt is derived from the Hebrew name Mattityahu, which means "gift of God" or "God's gift." The name can be traced back to the biblical figure Mattathias, a Jewish priest who led the Maccabean Revolt against the Seleucid Empire in the 2nd century BCE.
Mattityahu was a common name among Jews in ancient times, and it was often shortened to Matityah or Mattai. The name eventually spread to other cultures and languages, evolving into various forms such as Matthew, Matthias, and Matt.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Matt can be found in the New Testament of the Bible, where it appears as the name of one of the twelve apostles, Matthew (also known as Levi). Matthew was a tax collector who became a follower of Jesus Christ and is believed to have authored the Gospel of Matthew.
In the Middle Ages, the name Matt became popular in Europe, particularly in England and other parts of the British Isles. Several notable historical figures bore this name, including Matt Buchinger (1674-1739), a German artist and performer who was born without arms or legs but became renowned for his calligraphy and woodcarving skills.
Another famous bearer of the name was Matt Talbot (1856-1925), an Irish Catholic who overcame alcoholism and devoted his life to penance and helping the poor. He is venerated as a patron saint of those struggling with addiction.
During the Renaissance, the Italian polymath Matteo Ricci (1552-1610) was known as Matt Ricci. He was a Jesuit missionary who traveled to China and made significant contributions to the introduction of Western science and culture to the country.
In more recent history, Matt Busby (1909-1994) was a legendary Scottish football player and manager who guided Manchester United to numerous successes, including the European Cup in 1968.
Matt Damon (born 1970) is a renowned American actor who has starred in numerous critically acclaimed films, such as Good Will Hunting, The Departed, and The Martian, for which he received several Academy Award nominations.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Matt over time
The chart below shows babies named Matt 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 Matt, the clearest high point is 1998. The latest England and Wales figure is 3 births in 2024, compared with 64 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Matt by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Matt 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 | #3763 | 19 | 4 |
| 2010s | #2443 | 111 | 10 |
| 2000s | #782 | 322 | 10 |
| 1990s | #382 | 234 | 4 |
Geography
Where Matt is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Matt. 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.
Matt ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #415 in 2017.
Across the UK
Matt in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#590 in 2013
17 years of NRS records, 104 total registered
Northern Ireland (NISRA)
#415 in 2017
8 years of NISRA records, 32 total registered
Notable bearers
Famous people named Matt
-
Matt Worthington
association football player
footballer
1997-
-
Matt Worley
rugby union player
English rugby union footballer
1997-
-
Matt Weston
skeleton racer
British skeleton racer
1997-
-
Matt Whitley
rugby league player
English rugby league footballer
1996-
-
Matt Young
association football player
English footballer (born 1994)
1994-
-
Matt McKiernan
cricketer
cricketer (1994-)
1994-
-
Matt Taylor
cricketer
English cricketer born 1994
1994-
-
Matt Winter
civil servant; cricketer
English civil servant and cricketer
1993-
Related
Names similar to Matt
- 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
Matt: questions and answers
How popular is the name Matt in the UK right now?
In 2024, Matt was ranked #5119 for boys in England and Wales, with 3 births registered.
When was Matt most popular?
The peak year on record was 1998, with 64 babies registered as Matt in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Matt?
A masculine given name of English origin referring to Matthew.
How many people are called Matt in the UK?
A total of 686 babies have been registered as Matt across the 28 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 104 more in Scotland and 32 in Northern Ireland.
Where is Matt most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Matt ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #415 in 2017. 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.