Bobi

♀ Girl

Pronounced BOH-bee /ˈboʊ.bi/High

Meaning: Bobi is a trimmed, informal spelling of Bobbie, itself a diminutive of Roberta (and sometimes Barbara). Roberta comes from the Germanic Hrodebert, 'bright fame', so a girl named Bobi inherits that sunny meaning through the nickname.Medium

In 30 seconds: Bobi is a breezy respelling of Bobbie, the pet form of Roberta ('bright fame'). A mid-century tomboy-charmed nickname-name, it was borne by only a few dozen girls a year.

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Origin MediumEnglish

MeaningBobi is a trimmed, informal spelling of Bobbie, itself a diminutive of Roberta (and sometimes Barbara). Roberta comes from the Germanic Hrodebert, 'bright fame', so a girl named Bobi inherits that sunny meaning through the nickname.

U.S. rank (1996)#12030 ↘ Falling

1996 U.S. births6 girls (0.00% of U.S. girls)

Peak year1979

Total births (all-time)≈ 593

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

Bobi is one of the informal spellings of Bobbie, the diminutive that Robertas and occasionally Barbaras carried in daily life. Roberta descends from the old Germanic name Hrodebert, meaning 'bright fame', and by the twentieth century its short forms had become given names in their own right.

The spelling surfaced in the era of casual, boyish-cute girl names and reached its faint high point around 1979, though even then it went to only a few dozen babies a year. It faded by the mid-1990s and has not revived; it reads today as a warm, dated relic of a Roberta-and-Bobbie generation now in their sixties and seventies.

Did you know? Bobi belongs to a whole mid-century family of snappy '-ie/-i' girl nicknames given as legal first names, when a Roberta might simply be Bobi on her birth certificate rather than her christening card.

Overall data confidence 60%

References - Bobi / Bobbie / Roberta — Diminutive of Roberta, Germanic 'bright fame'; mid-century nickname-as-given-name

Variations

BobbieBobbiBobbeRoberta

Nicknames

BobBee

Famous Bearers

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If you like Bobi…

Bobbi— the standard spelling Bobi streamlines, same nickname and sound

Roberta— the full formal name Bobi ultimately shortens

Toni— another mid-century -i nickname given as a girl's first name

Jodi— shares the casual two-beat '-i' tomboy-charm of the same era

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Bobi mean?

Bobi is a respelled form of Bobbie, a pet name for Roberta, meaning 'bright fame'.

How do you pronounce Bobi?

It's said BOH-bee /ˈboʊ.bi/ — two syllables, stress on the first.

Is Bobi a boy or girl name?

Bobi is used as a girl's name.

How popular is Bobi?

Bobi has always been rare, a mid-century nickname spelling that quietly faded by the nineties.