Bea
Feminine · “she who makes happy”
Bea is Beatrice shortened — she who makes happy, in Latin — and Dante's Beatrice leads him through paradise.
How old is the name Bea?
Bea first appears in US birth records in 1883 — 142 years ago. The typical Bea alive today was born around 1958, making them about 67 years old. About 1,400 people named Bea are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Bea most popular?
Bea peaked in 1908, reaching #829 nationally. Today it ranks #2214, 1,385 places below that high. See the whole 1908 chart.
Where it comes from
From Viatrix to Bea
The story of Bea
Viatrix meant a traveler, and Christian Latin heard beatus in it and rewrote the name as Beatrix — so the meaning changed by mishearing. Dante's Beatrice guides him through the Paradiso. Bea is the standard short form and appears in American records in current use.
Meaning
she who makes happy
Through Beatrice, from the Latin beatrix, 'she who makes happy', from beare, 'to bless'. The earlier form was Viatrix, 'traveler', which Christian Latin reshaped toward beatus, 'blessed'. Both stages are documented.
How the name formed
- Viatrix
- Beatrix
- Beatrice
- Bea
Related forms: Beatrice · Bea · Bea
Pronouncing Bea
BEE
One syllable. Some speakers say BAY-uh, following the Spanish and Hungarian.
Nicknames for Bea
Moderate
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1883
- Most girls named
- 202583 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #829reached in 1908
- Change vs 2023
- +16.9%83 in 2025, from 71
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Bea in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Beatrice in English — related form
- Bea in Spanish — same name
- Bea in Hungarian — same name
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, New York, Texas.
Beas among us
people named Bea are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 girl in 19,365 born in 2025 was named Bea
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Bea sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Where Bea is headed
Bea looks set to keep climbing gently, with roughly 31% more babies a year by 2030 if the current curve holds.
Medium confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Bea beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Bea in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US girls given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That the name changed meaning by being misheard is a first-rate history.
- Beatrice is available as a full formal version.
- One syllable, clean, and rarely mispronounced.
- It is a homophone of the insect in English.
- Given outright it stays informal; Beatrice on the certificate keeps both registers.
- It is very short and can be swallowed by a long surname.
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What they receive
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Bea
Feminine · #2214 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Beas are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,400 people named Bea are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Bea in 2025?
- Bea ranks #2214 among US girl names in 2025, with 83 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Bea?
- About 1 in every 19,365 US girls born in 2025 was named Bea — 83 in all.
- Will my child share the name Bea with classmates?
- Bea will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Bea
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Hania#2214 · Nava#2214 · Lanie#2214 · Mahira#2214 · Perry#2214 · Alorah#2214 · Lyana#2214 · Katrina#2214
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Bea? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Bea and another name?
See them side by side — full stats, history and a gentle verdict.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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