Romeo
Romeo was the 302nd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,129 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 283rd with 1,191 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 78 places. More babies were named Romeo in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning pilgrim to Rome; a Roman · Italian, Greek
Say it ROH-mee-oh /ˈroʊmioʊ/
- Rank in 2025
- #302 boys, up 76 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,129boys
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a boy’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20241,191 babies
- Total since 1880
- 26,864babies recorded
What does the name Romeo mean?
Romeo is Italian, from medieval Italian romeo, a pilgrim to Rome, ultimately from Greek Rhōmaios, "Roman". Wiktionary and Harrison (1918) agree on this derivation. The name is known above all from Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet (about 1595), and its English use is shaped by that story. Yonge's 1884 gloss "fame" is outdated. Harrison also lists the related English surname Romer, a roamer or pilgrim to Rome, from the same Latin Roma.
romeo (Medieval Italian, “pilgrim to Rome”)Ῥωμαῖος (Ancient Greek, “Roman”)
How sure is this? Well established.
See also: Italian names, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Romeo', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Henry Harrison, Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary, vol. 2 (1918), s.v. 'ROMEO', Morland Press (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
- Charlotte M. Yonge, History of Christian Names, new ed. (1884), index s.v. 'Romeo' (19th-century work; used for dated usage facts only), Macmillan (public domain; Internet Archive scan)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'Romeo', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
Romeo popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (boys) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #302 | 1,129 |
| 2020 | #378 | 820 |
| 2010 | #358 | 850 |
| 2000 | #606 | 318 |
| 1990 | #1,034 | 106 |
| 1980 | #1,065 | 73 |
| 1970 | #949 | 72 |
| 1960 | #1,206 | 43 |
| 1950 | #1,019 | 48 |
| 1940 | #916 | 49 |
| 1930 | #615 | 101 |
| 1920 | #622 | 104 |
| 1910 | #615 | 23 |
| 1900 | #1,036 | 8 |
| 1890 | #867 | 7 |
| 1880 | #734 | 8 |
How popular is Romeo, counting every spelling?
Romeo has no other common spelling that sounds the same. Counting every name's spellings together, it ranks #313 for boys in 2025, against #302 on the official list, because Colson/Kolson/Colsen and Bryan/Brian/Bryon and Kason/Kasen/Casen move ahead once their spellings are combined.
How many kids will share the name Romeo?
1,129 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Romeo (0.31 per 1,000 births). For a boy named Romeo 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 7 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Romeo.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Romeo?
About 23,400 people born in the US named Romeo are alive today, with a median age of 12; half are between 6 and 20. That makes Romeo a young name: most people with it are children.
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.
Romeo by state
How common Romeo was among boys born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Nevada (3.0×), New Mexico (3.0×), Arizona (2.0×), California (2.0×), Oregon (1.9×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Kentucky, Alabama, South Carolina.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Romeo: their share of US boys followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Romeo, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Romeo · Sibling names for Romeo
Questions about the name Romeo
What does Romeo mean?
Romeo means “pilgrim to Rome; a Roman” (Italian, Greek origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Romeo?
Romeo was the 302nd most popular name for boys in 2025, given to 1,129 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 283rd with 1,191 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 78 places. More babies were named Romeo in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Romeo a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a boy’s name given the name Romeo in the US.
Where is Romeo most popular?
In 2021–2025, Romeo was most common in Nevada (1.89 per 1,000 boys), followed by New Mexico and Arizona.