Given name & surname
Cove
“cave, cove, hollow, cavern”
Cove is a surname from Old English.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Cove goes back to Old English cofa, meaning “cave, cove, hollow, cavern.”
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
From Old English cofa (“cave, cove, hollow, cavern”).
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1997. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Cove through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,696
- 1,224 boys · 472 girls
- Most popular year
- 2025
- 271 babies
- 2025
- 271
- #1,192 for boys · #1,933 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +191%
- Rising fast
Boys, girls and both
The balance of boys and girls given this name has shifted over time. Recent births are 68% boys.
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 171 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,192 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 124.7% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. It also appeared in 100 birth records for girls in 2025. In 2025, California and Tennessee shared the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (14 each). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 549 as a first name in 2020; 691 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Cove’s family of names
The ring: spellings.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Similar names
If you love Cove, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Covey
“a brood of birds”
64% boys · 36% girls
Tatum
“bringer of joy; spirited”
47% boys · 53% girls
Arrington
“eagle” · “belonging to”
54% boys · 46% girls
River
“from the river”
65% boys · 35% girls
Quincy
“the fifth-born child”
66% boys · 34% girls
Kamari
Kamari is a masculine given name.
72% boys · 28% girls
Tru
“one who is honest”
64% boys · 36% girls
Canyon
“from the footpath” · “from the deep ravine”
92% boys · 8% girls