| George | Timothy | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Farmer, earth-worker | Honoring God |
| Origin | Greek | Greek |
| Gender | Boy | Boy |
| Pronunciation | JORJ | TIM-uh-thee |
| Syllables | 1 | 3 |
| First appeared | 1880 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 1921 (27,476) | 1959 (30,783) |
| In 2025 | 2,848 | 1,734 |
| Trend | Steady | Declining |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | George | Timothy |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 16,661 | 10,984 |
| 2010s | 28,407 | 28,234 |
| 2000s | 28,006 | 52,470 |
| 1990s | 35,246 | 107,772 |
| 1980s | 45,712 | 172,835 |
| 1970s | 64,757 | 181,260 |
| 1960s | 113,023 | 276,837 |
| 1950s | 181,031 | 198,324 |
| 1940s | 209,013 | 43,503 |
| 1930s | 192,289 | 5,105 |
| 1920s | 261,945 | 2,960 |
| 1910s | 176,609 | 1,918 |
| 1900s | 43,589 | 647 |
| 1890s | 43,358 | 650 |
| 1880s | 47,651 | 693 |
George comes from the Greek Georgios, “farmer” or “earth-worker,” from gē (“earth”) and ergon (“work”). St George, the dragon-slayer, is the patron saint of England.
Timothy comes from the Greek Timotheos, “honouring God,” from timē (“honour”) and theos (“god”). Timothy was a young companion of the apostle Paul.
George is more popular than Timothy today: about 2,848 US babies were given the name George in 2025, compared with 1,734 named Timothy.
George means Farmer, earth-worker (Greek origin), while Timothy means Honoring God (Greek origin).
In US records, George first appears in 1880 and Timothy in 1880, so George has the longer recorded history.