Masterpiece Generator Name Generator
How popular is the name Beth?
Births per year, rank history and how many Beths are alive today.
Beth (female) is a shortened form of the name Elizabeth. Although Beth itself was given to 12 babies in England and Wales in 2024 (ranked 2254th as a registered name), most Beths are registered as Elizabeth, which ranked 74th in 2025 with 624 babies.
Most people called Beth are registered as Elizabeth, and share that name's profile: the Elizabeth you are most likely to meet is around 72 years old. Half of all Elizabeths born in England and Wales are between 38 and 76, and there are at least 250,000 of them alive today. Only some Elizabeths go by Beth.
How many babies are named Beth or Elizabeth each year?
Combined registrations of Elizabeth, Beth. Figures before 1996 are estimates.
Where does Elizabeth rank as a registered name?
Where does Beth rank as a registered name?
Where this data comes from
Figures from 1996 onwards are the Office for National Statistics' annual baby-name registrations for England and Wales, which record every name given to three or more babies in a year. Figures before 1996 are estimates: the ONS published only top-100 rankings at ten-year intervals back to 1904, so counts for those years are modelled from the rankings, calibrated against Douglas Galbi's long-run research into English name frequencies, and shown with an uncertainty band. Estimates of living bearers combine these birth figures with national life tables and ONS mid-year population estimates.
One limit worth naming: these figures count names as registered at birth. Anyone who changes their name later in life - including trans people, and anyone who adopts a different name by deed poll or simply by use - is not reflected here. Birth registrations record where a name began, not the name a person lives with.
Common questions
Is Beth short for Elizabeth?
Yes - Beth is a shortened form of Elizabeth. Beths are usually registered as Elizabeth at birth.
When was the name Beth most popular?
The full name Elizabeth peaked in 1904, when around 13,000 babies in England and Wales were given the name. Beth itself peaked as a registered name in 1994, with 696 babies.
How many people are called Beth?
There's no official count of people who go by Beth, because it's a nickname rather than a registered name. What we can say: at least 250,000 people registered as Elizabeth born in England and Wales are alive today, and some of them go by Beth.
How old is the typical Beth?
Most people called Beth are registered as Elizabeth. Most living Elizabeths are between 38 and 76; the most common age is about 72.
Is Beth becoming more or less popular?
Declining: recent figures are a fraction of the 1904 peak.