Given name & surname
Matei
“gift of God”·“a gift from God”
Matei is a variant of Matthew. Interpretations include “gift of God” (Hebrew) and “a gift from God” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Matei is a variant of Matthew. Interpretations include “gift of God” (Hebrew) and “a gift from God” (Hebrew). These may reflect different naming traditions.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Matei is a variant of Matthew. An origin associated with Matthew is Hebrew.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
In Romanian usage, Matei developed from Ματθαῖος.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1996. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Matei through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 281
- 281 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2019
- 19 babies
- 2025
- 13
- #6,681 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −18%
- Easing
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 13 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 6,681 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 18.3% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 19 in 2019. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 328 as a first name in 2020; 431 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.
Matei’s family of names
In Romanian usage, Matei developed from the Ancient Greek form Ματθαῖος. Matei has a related form in Matthew. In Romanian usage, Matei has a conventional equivalent in the English form Matthew.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Matei has relatives in 4 languages.
4 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 2
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Matei
- Matei BasarabVoivode of Wallachia1580–1654
- Matei VișniecRomanian French writerborn 1956
- Matei MilloRomanian playwright and actor1814–1896
- Matei ZahariaRomanian-Canadian computer scientist and engineerborn 1985
- Matei SocorRomanian composer (1908-1980)
- Matei IlieRomanian footballerborn 2002
- Matei CazacuRomanian historianborn 1946
- Matei CălinescuRomanian academic1934–2009
- Matei Pavel HaiducuRomanian spy (1948-1998)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
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