Given name & surname
Babette
“God is my oath”·“foreign woman”·“a traveler from a foreign land; a stranger”
In French use, Babette is a diminutive of Elisabeth. One interpretation is “God is my oath.” In German use, Babette is a short form of Barbara. Interpretations include “foreign woman” and “a traveler from a foreign land; a stranger” (Latin). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Original FrenchElisabeth
Meaning & origin
What it means
In French use, Babette is a diminutive of Elisabeth. One interpretation is “God is my oath.” In German use, Babette is a short form of Barbara. Interpretations include “foreign woman” and “a traveler from a foreign land; a stranger” (Latin). These may reflect different naming traditions. Babette is a form of Elizabeth. “God is my oath” is the etymological interpretation given for Elisabeth, the same name in a different spelling. “My God is bountiful” is another recorded interpretation, but the two should be kept distinct rather than blended into one literal translation.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is French.
How it developed
Babette is used as a form of Barbara. Babette is a form of Elizabeth. The shared background comes through Elizabeth: English generally uses Elizabeth with a z, where many European languages retain Elisabeth with an s. Elisabeth is connected with Elisheba; its final element may have been reshaped through association with Hebrew shabbath, “sabbath.”
Combines direct and name-family evidence
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1891. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Babette is a form of Elizabeth. The history of Elizabeth gives this family its wider story. The New Testament Elisabeth is the mother of John the Baptist. English royal associations include Elizabeth I and, in the twentieth century, Elizabeth Bowes-Lyon and her daughter Elizabeth II. Elizabeth’s familiar forms developed along several paths, including Eliza, Beth, Bess, Betty, Libby and Lizzie.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Babette through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 3,287
- 5 boys · 3,282 girls
- Most popular year
- 1961
- 183 babies
- 2025
- 5
- #15,293 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 5 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 15,293 among girls’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for girls was 178 in 1961. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,526 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Babette’s family of names
In German usage, Babette is a short form of Barbara. Babette is a form of Elizabeth. Babette is a form of Barbara.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 19
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Babette
- Babette ColeEnglish children's writer and illustrator (1950–2017)
- Babette von BülowGerman writer (1850-1927)
- Babette van VeenDutch actress, singer and writerborn 1968
- Babette BardotSwedish actressborn 1940
- Babette BrownSouth African writer on race and diversity1931–2019
- Babette DeutschAmerican writer (1895–1982)
- Babette Mangoltephotographer, filmmaker, artist (born 1941)
- Babette BabichAmerican philosopherborn 1956
- Babette van der WolfDutch cyclisteborn 2004
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Babette, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Bethie
“God is my oath” · “My God is bountiful”
>99% girls
Buffie
“my God is bountiful”
>99% girls
Lise
“resembling a rising salmon”
>99% girls
Sarita
“princess”
>99% girls
Damita
“the little princess”
>99% girls
Betsie
“God is my oath” · “My God is bountiful”
>99% girls
Liesl
“my God is bountiful” · “God is my oath”
>99% girls
Lisa
“my God is bountiful” · “God is my oath”
>99% girls