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A name. A world of connections.
“love of God”
01 / Meaning & origin
Theophilus is a masculine given name documented in English, Spanish, German and 2 other languages. English Wiktionary traces it to Ancient Greek Θεόφιλος via Middle English and Latin, with the stated meaning “love of God”.
2 source accounts
Meaning: “love of God”
From Middle English Theophilus, from Latin Theophilus, from Ancient Greek Θεόφιλος (Theóphilos), meaning "love of God" or "friend of God".
Du grec ancien θεοφιλής, theóphiles (« aimé de Dieu »).
02 / Across borders
Explore published naming statistics and documented language connections around the world.
The name atlas
17
countries in our sources
Select a country to follow Theophilus’s connections around the world.
4 countries with published statistics. Language records show cultural connections; they do not measure how common a name is.
Selected country
Statistics + language records
United States, 2025: 57 boys (rank 2390). Documented as a given name in English.
Explore United States4 of 17 countries
03 / By the numbers
Follow the spelling through the years, one published dataset at a time.
1880–2025 Spelling: Theophilus
Recorded category boys
Hover to explore a year. Use arrow keys when a chart point has focus.
Source: US Social Security Administration; redistributed by nkrishnaswami · SSA national baby names, 1880–2025 (CC0 redistribution)
Integer application counts retained without rounding.
Per million is unavailable: this source has no matching published total.
| Year | Applications | Rank | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1881 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1882 | 5 | 943 | observed |
| 1883 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1884 | 5 | 971 | observed |
| 1885 | 5 | 936 | observed |
| 1886 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1887 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1888 | 5 | 1,031 | observed |
| 1889 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1890 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1891 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1892 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1893 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1894 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1895 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1896 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1897 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1898 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1899 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1900 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1901 | 6 | 943 | observed |
| 1902 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1903 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1904 | 6 | 1,064 | observed |
| 1905 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1906 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1907 | 6 | 1,200 | observed |
| 1908 | no value | no value | not covered |
| 1909 | 7 | 1,155 | observed |
| 1910 | 7 | 1,314 | observed |
| 1911 | 9 | 1,190 | observed |
| 1912 | 7 | 2,045 | observed |
| 1913 | 15 | 1,365 | observed |
| 1914 | 15 | 1,608 | observed |
| 1915 | 20 | 1,553 | observed |
| 1916 | 15 | 1,949 | observed |
| 1917 | 20 | 1,643 | observed |
| 1918 | 24 | 1,499 | observed |
| 1919 | 24 | 1,481 | observed |
| 1920 | 21 | 1,694 | observed |
| 1921 | 28 | 1,412 | observed |
| 1922 | 22 | 1,644 | observed |
| 1923 | 10 | 2,772 | observed |
| 1924 | 30 | 1,355 | observed |
| 1925 | 17 | 1,935 | observed |
| 1926 | 12 | 2,436 | observed |
| 1927 | 19 | 1,796 | observed |
| 1928 | 15 | 2,048 | observed |
| 1929 | 17 | 1,848 | observed |
| 1930 | 18 | 1,753 | observed |
| 1931 | 19 | 1,643 | observed |
| 1932 | 12 | 2,191 | observed |
| 1933 | 16 | 1,770 | observed |
| 1934 | 15 | 1,860 | observed |
| 1935 | 8 | 2,719 | observed |
| 1936 | 11 | 2,184 | observed |
| 1937 | 10 | 2,332 | observed |
| 1938 | 17 | 1,689 | observed |
| 1939 | 9 | 2,449 | observed |
| 1940 | 10 | 2,322 | observed |
| 1941 | 7 | 2,872 | observed |
| 1942 | 12 | 2,145 | observed |
| 1943 | 9 | 2,563 | observed |
| 1944 | 14 | 1,890 | observed |
| 1945 | 13 | 1,926 | observed |
| 1946 | 18 | 1,692 | observed |
| 1947 | 19 | 1,733 | observed |
| 1948 | 25 | 1,460 | observed |
| 1949 | 25 | 1,462 | observed |
| 1950 | 22 | 1,572 | observed |
| 1951 | 21 | 1,643 | observed |
| 1952 | 21 | 1,665 | observed |
| 1953 | 20 | 1,709 | observed |
| 1954 | 28 | 1,435 | observed |
| 1955 | 24 | 1,572 | observed |
| 1956 | 18 | 1,886 | observed |
| 1957 | 27 | 1,511 | observed |
| 1958 | 17 | 1,953 | observed |
| 1959 | 16 | 2,033 | observed |
| 1960 | 16 | 2,042 | observed |
| 1961 | 12 | 2,409 | observed |
| 1962 | 13 | 2,279 | observed |
| 1963 | 13 | 2,300 | observed |
| 1964 | 11 | 2,546 | observed |
| 1965 | 18 | 1,856 | observed |
| 1966 | 17 | 1,891 | observed |
| 1967 | 19 | 1,809 | observed |
| 1968 | 14 | 2,200 | observed |
| 1969 | 13 | 2,415 | observed |
| 1970 | 11 | 2,891 | observed |
| 1971 | 20 | 2,052 | observed |
| 1972 | 15 | 2,418 | observed |
| 1973 | 15 | 2,513 | observed |
| 1974 | 15 | 2,549 | observed |
| 1975 | 22 | 2,065 | observed |
| 1976 | 11 | 3,264 | observed |
| 1977 | 32 | 1,670 | observed |
| 1978 | 15 | 2,799 | observed |
| 1979 | 19 | 2,465 | observed |
| 1980 | 16 | 2,831 | observed |
| 1981 | 22 | 2,270 | observed |
| 1982 | 17 | 2,709 | observed |
| 1983 | 13 | 3,230 | observed |
| 1984 | 12 | 3,459 | observed |
| 1985 | 13 | 3,401 | observed |
| 1986 | 13 | 3,440 | observed |
| 1987 | 14 | 3,339 | observed |
| 1988 | 23 | 2,509 | observed |
| 1989 | 14 | 3,809 | observed |
| 1990 | 17 | 3,467 | observed |
| 1991 | 12 | 4,476 | observed |
| 1992 | 20 | 3,220 | observed |
| 1993 | 13 | 4,447 | observed |
| 1994 | 14 | 4,290 | observed |
| 1995 | 10 | 5,501 | observed |
| 1996 | 16 | 4,022 | observed |
| 1997 | 23 | 3,160 | observed |
| 1998 | 24 | 3,191 | observed |
| 1999 | 24 | 3,279 | observed |
| 2000 | 21 | 3,764 | observed |
| 2001 | 16 | 4,676 | observed |
| 2002 | 20 | 4,044 | observed |
| 2003 | 27 | 3,366 | observed |
| 2004 | 17 | 4,793 | observed |
| 2005 | 24 | 3,815 | observed |
| 2006 | 17 | 5,072 | observed |
| 2007 | 26 | 3,893 | observed |
| 2008 | 19 | 4,901 | observed |
| 2009 | 17 | 5,334 | observed |
| 2010 | 16 | 5,478 | observed |
| 2011 | 18 | 4,983 | observed |
| 2012 | 36 | 3,115 | observed |
| 2013 | 38 | 2,955 | observed |
| 2014 | 39 | 2,929 | observed |
| 2015 | 34 | 3,299 | observed |
| 2016 | 48 | 2,587 | observed |
| 2017 | 40 | 2,951 | observed |
| 2018 | 49 | 2,579 | observed |
| 2019 | 42 | 2,897 | observed |
| 2020 | 43 | 2,806 | observed |
| 2021 | 44 | 2,819 | observed |
| 2022 | 68 | 2,150 | observed |
| 2023 | 63 | 2,244 | observed |
| 2024 | 65 | 2,210 | observed |
| 2025 | 57 | 2,390 | observed |
Statistics count the spelling “Theophilus” as recorded by the publisher. When a spelling has several independent origins, the counts are not split between them. Counts measure applications. Gaps are years without a published value, not zeros.
Rates per million are unavailable for this series because no compatible denominator has been imported.
Retrieved 2026-10-15 · CC0-1.0
Read our methodology04 / Through time
Passages quoted verbatim from public-domain reference works. They reflect the scholarship of their time, not current consensus, and may use obsolete spellings.
Theophilus— “God beloved”
The word Theos itself had been assumed as a surname by one of the worst of the line of the Syrian Antiochus, and Theon had never been infrequent among the Greeks. Θεόφιλος (Theophilos), God-beloved, to whom is dedicated the Gospel of St. Luke, must have been so called before his Christianity. Thenceforward Theophilus became a name in the Church; but it has been less used on the Continent than in England. There, probably from its occurrence in Holy Scripture, and also from…
The word Theos itself had been assumed as a surname by one of the worst of the line of the Syrian Antiochus, and Theon had never been infrequent among the Greeks. Θεόφιλος (Theophilos), God-beloved, to whom is dedicated the Gospel of St. Luke, must have been so called before his Christianity. Thenceforward Theophilus became a name in the Church; but it has been less used on the Continent than in England. There, probably from its occurrence in Holy Scripture, and also from being generally the title of the favourite speaker in religious dialogues, it has been in some use. The feminine, Theophila, was the name of the mother of Sir Joshua Reynolds.
Yonge, History of Christian Names (1884), Part III, Chapter V (Christian Greek Names), Section II (Names from Theos) · Public domain (Project Gutenberg)
People recorded with this given name in Wikidata. Their names may use a different spelling, or include it as a middle or baptismal name.
French-born British natural philosopher and clergyman
former elected State President of South Africa who died before being able to take office (1898–1968)
South African footballer
Recorded as a middle or baptismal name
A little story to keep
Take the story of Theophilus with you. Create a personal name passport with its meaning, roots and connections.
06 / Behind the facts
Review status: Source-reported — no editorial review recorded yet. Last data change 2026-10-15.
SSA national baby names, 1880–2025 (CC0 redistribution)
US Social Security Administration; redistributed by nkrishnaswami · CC0-1.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
Statistik Austria — Vornamen (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1): first names of live births, Austria, 1984-2025 (national counts from district rows)
Statistik Austria (Bundesanstalt Statistik Österreich) · CC-BY-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
Spain — first names of residents, census snapshot 2025-01-01
Instituto Nacional de Estadística (INE), Spain · CC-BY-4.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
Baby names in England and Wales: 2025 (boys and girls workbooks, Table 6: all published names)
Office for National Statistics (ONS) · OGL-UK-3.0 · retrieved 2026-10-14
NISRA — First Forenames Given to Babies Registered in Northern Ireland, 1997-2025 (full list)
Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency (NISRA) · OGL-UK-3.0 · retrieved 2026-10-15
Wiktionary text: CC BY-SA 4.0. Wikidata: CC0. Commons recordings retain their individual file licences. Complete attribution is available in each group above and alongside each chart.
