Geoffrey
Geoffrey was the 3599th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 31 babies. Its best year was 1975, when it ranked 167th with 1,395 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,767 places. More babies were named Geoffrey in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Meaning Meaning disputed · Germanic, French
Say it JEF-ree /ˈdʒɛfri/
- Rank in 2025
- #3,599 boys, down 897 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 31boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19751,395 babies
- Total since 1880
- 54,534babies recorded
What does the name Geoffrey mean?
Geoffrey came into English from Old French Geoffroi and is Germanic in origin. The second part is agreed to be friþu, "peace". The first is disputed: DMNES gives the tribal name of the Geats, a word for "foreigner" and a word for "arrow" as possible sources, while Wikipedia treats Geoffrey as a form of Godfrey, "god + peace", with which DMNES says it was often confused. Geoffrey Chaucer is its most famous English bearer.
*friþuz (Proto-Germanic, “peace”)
How sure is this? Disputed. Only the second element ("peace") is agreed; the first has several proposed sources.
Related names: Jeffrey, Godfrey, Jeff, Geoff.
See also: Germanic names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Geoffrey', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Geoffrey', DMNES (Durham University)
- Wikipedia, 'Geoffrey (name)', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation)
Nicknames for Geoffrey
The usual nicknames for Geoffrey are Geoff and Jeff. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 boys named Geoffrey in the last five years, 101 were named Jeff, against 69 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Boys, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Geoff | Traditional | — | — |
| Jeff · also for Jeffrey, Jefferson, Jeffery | Traditional | #3,342 | 215 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are boys given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Geoffreys go by each one.
Geoffrey popularity since 1880
A few girls are given the name too: 140 since 1963.
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,599 | 31 |
| 2020 | #2,702 | 46 |
| 2010 | #1,552 | 103 |
| 2000 | #652 | 278 |
| 1990 | #249 | 1,098 |
| 1980 | #200 | 1,222 |
| 1970 | #201 | 1,286 |
| 1960 | #281 | 799 |
| 1950 | #264 | 614 |
| 1940 | #476 | 148 |
| 1930 | #1,312 | 30 |
| 1920 | #1,781 | 20 |
| 1910 | #1,683 | 5 |
| 1900 | #1,392 | 5 |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Geoffrey, counting every spelling?
Geoffrey has no other common spelling that sounds the same.
How many kids will share the name Geoffrey?
31 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Geoffrey (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Geoffrey born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 270 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Geoffrey.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Geoffrey?
About 45,400 people born in the US named Geoffrey are alive today, with a median age of 48; half are between 38 and 59. That makes Geoffrey mostly worn by adults in their thirties to fifties.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Geoffrey by state
How common Geoffrey was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. In 47 states fewer than five boys a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Geoffrey: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Geoffrey, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Geoffrey · Sibling names for Geoffrey
Questions about the name Geoffrey
What does Geoffrey mean?
The meaning of Geoffrey is disputed: Only the second element ("peace") is agreed; the first has several proposed sources.
How popular is the name Geoffrey?
Geoffrey was the 3599th most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 31 babies. Its best year was 1975, when it ranked 167th with 1,395 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 1,767 places. More babies were named Geoffrey in the 1980s than in any other decade.
Is Geoffrey a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Geoffrey in the US.
Where is Geoffrey most popular?
In 2021–2025, Geoffrey was most common in Texas (0.02 per 1,000 boys), followed by Florida and New York.