Given name & surname
Hobbes
“one who is bright with fame”
Hobbes is a form of Robert. One German interpretation is “one who is bright with fame.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Hobbes carries the interpretation “one who is bright with fame.” Hobbes is a form of Robert. One German interpretation is “one who is bright with fame.”
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
Hobbes is used as a form of Robert.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 2011. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Hobbes is a form of Robert. The history of Robert gives this family its wider story. Robert’s historical associations include three kings of Scotland, notably Robert the Bruce.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Hobbes through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 65
- 65 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2015
- 12 babies
- 2025
- 5
- #12,717 for boys
- 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 boys, ranking No. 12,717 among boys’ names. The recent annual counts are too incomplete to establish a ten-year comparison. Its largest published annual count for boys was 12 in 2015. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 163 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.
Hobbes’s family of names
In English usage, Hobbes as a surname is a diminutive of Robert. Hobbes has a related form in Hob. Hobbes is a form of Robert.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Hobbes has relatives in 5 languages. Lines run from its English roots to each of them.
Englishwhere Hobbes comes from · 1 name
Nicknames & forms 10
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Robertfull form · English
- Hobbsvariant
- Hobbyvariant
- Hobbievariant
- Hobbeavariant
- Hobbeevariant
- Hobbeyvariant
- Hobbivariant
Show 2 moreShow fewer
Across languages 4
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
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