Babe

♀ Girl

How to Pronounce Babe

Pronounced BAYB /ˈbeɪb/Medium

Meaning: Babe is the English word of endearment for a baby or sweetheart, used as a given name and also as an affectionate short form of Barbara, from the Greek for foreign or stranger.Low

In 30 seconds: Babe is the English endearment used as a name, also short for Barbara. It reached a small high around nineteen-fifteen (said BAYB).

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Origin LowEnglish

MeaningBabe is the English word of endearment for a baby or sweetheart, used as a given name and also as an affectionate short form of Barbara, from the Greek for foreign or stranger.

U.S. rank (1947)#5360 ↘ Falling

1947 U.S. births5 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)

Peak year1915

Total births (all-time)≈ 383

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Babe comes straight from the tender English word for a baby or darling, occasionally set down as a legal name and often standing in for Barbara. It reads as a warm, informal endearment turned given name.

The name was always rare, given to only about twenty girls a year at its early-century peak, and it faded as a formal name while thriving as a nickname. A woman formally named Babe from around nineteen-fifteen would be well over a hundred today. It survives mainly as a pet name of affection.

Did you know? The athlete Babe Didrikson Zaharias, one of the greatest all-around sportswomen of the twentieth century, carried Babe as a nickname, as did baseball's Babe Ruth.

Overall data confidence 40%

References - Babe — English endearment; short for Barbara; bearer Babe Didrikson Zaharias

Variations

BarbaraBabetteBaby

Nicknames

BabsBarbBaby

Famous Bearers

★Babe Didrikson Zaharias (1911-1956)
American Olympic track athlete and pioneering champion golfer, known by the nickname Babe

If you like Babe…

Babette— a like affectionate B- pet-name-turned-name

Barbara— the fuller name it can shorten

Bebe— a like endearment used as a name

Birdie— a like sweet vintage nickname name

Explore names like Babe

By themerare vintage short-form endearment

All themes →All meanings →All origins →

Frequently Asked

What does the name Babe mean?

It is the English word of endearment for a baby or darling, also used as a short form of Barbara.

How do you pronounce Babe?

It is said BAYB /ˈbeɪb/, a single syllable rhyming with babe.

Is Babe a boy or girl name?

Babe is recorded here as a girl's name.

How popular is Babe?

It has always been very rare as a formal name, given to only about twenty girls a year at its peak in the early nineteen-hundreds.