| Kyrie | Theo | |
|---|---|---|
| Meaning | Lord | gift of God |
| Origin | greek | greek |
| Gender | Unisex | Unisex |
| Pronunciation | ky-REE / KEER-ee | THEE-oh |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| First appeared | 1986 | 1880 |
| Peak year | 2017 (1,780) | 2023 (4,140) |
| In 2025 | 1,416 | 3,945 |
| Trend | Rising | Near its peak |
Source: US Social Security Administration.
| Decade | Kyrie | Theo |
|---|---|---|
| 2020s | 9,420 | 20,784 |
| 2010s | 8,793 | 8,189 |
| 2000s | 219 | 1,386 |
| 1990s | 162 | 600 |
| 1980s | 18 | 540 |
| 1970s | 0 | 386 |
| 1960s | 0 | 323 |
| 1950s | 0 | 371 |
| 1940s | 0 | 440 |
| 1930s | 0 | 680 |
| 1920s | 0 | 980 |
| 1910s | 0 | 714 |
| 1900s | 0 | 226 |
| 1890s | 0 | 118 |
| 1880s | 0 | 93 |
From Greek 'kyrie', the vocative of 'kyrios' ('lord, master'), best known from the Christian liturgical prayer 'Kyrie eleison' ('Lord, have mercy'). Its modern popularity owes much to basketball player Kyrie Irving.
Short form of Theodore (or feminine Theodora), from Greek theos 'God' + doron 'gift'. Carries the 'gift of God' sense of the full name; on its own the element theos means 'God'.
Theo is more popular than Kyrie today: about 3,945 US babies were given the name Theo in 2025, compared with 1,416 named Kyrie.
Kyrie means Lord (greek origin), while Theo means gift of God (greek origin).
In US records, Kyrie first appears in 1986 and Theo in 1880, so Theo has the longer recorded history.