Tobias: meaning and UK use

What does Tobias mean?

Tobias is the Greek form of Tobiah, used in biblical and several European naming traditions. Toby is a related English form.

Language or name family covered

Greek form of a Hebrew name

Meaning or derivation

A form of Tobiah

Our browsing group

boy; classic, vintage

Browsing groups describe our editorial shortlist, not rules about who may use a name. A name can cross languages and genders.

Sources for this entry — reviewed 2026-10-07:

• Behind the Name — Tobias

Pronunciation and related forms

tuh-BYE-uhs (English)

English respellings are approximate; IPA is labelled where used. Follow the pronunciation a person or family chooses, and check it with a speaker of the intended language if that connection matters to you.

Related forms recorded in the reference: Tobiah, Toby. These may be full forms, diminutives or forms in another language; they are not necessarily pronounced alike or counted together in statistics.

How popular is Tobias?

In 2025, 461 baby boys in England and Wales were registered as Tobias, making it the 116th most popular boys’ name. That is down 8 places on 2024, when it ranked 108th. It has held a similar position for a decade (106th in 2015). Its best year in the ONS series was 2022, at 98th. These figures cover England and Wales, not the whole UK.

2025 rank (boys)

116th

2025 registrations

461

Best rank in this series

98th (2022)

Every year from 1996 to 2025

Tobias: rank and number of baby boys by year (ONS)

Year	Rank	Babies
2025	116	461
2024	108	496
2023	105	506
2022	98	568
2021	98	596
2020	104	574
2019	101	624
2018	98	647
2017	104	618
2016	101	647
2015	106	604
2014	120	524
2013	125	490
2012	128	486
2011	108	590
2010	115	540
2009	157	352
2008	145	383
2007	147	362
2006	145	352
2005	137	368
2004	148	314
2003	142	321
2002	127	346
2001	143	284
2000	133	287
1999	130	303
1998	126	318
1997	126	306
1996	132	296

The sum of published counts in this 1996–2025 boys series is 13,563. This is a lower bound where years are suppressed, not the number of living people with the name. A best rank is the best position within this series; it does not establish an all-time record.

Sources: ONS release, 2025; girls' dataset; boys' dataset. Our 20 top-ten positions were checked against Table 1 in the 2025 workbooks. The history chart and spelling comparisons come from the separate ONS 1996–2025 workbook, checked 7 October 2026. Spelling variants are separate entries. Scotland and Northern Ireland have separate statistics.

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Names to compare with Tobias

These suggestions share a browsing group and one or more of our style tags or source-context labels. They are taste comparisons, not etymological relatives or a popularity ranking.

• Arthurvintage, classic · Meaning unknown
• Felixclassic, vintage · Lucky or successful
• Oscarclassic, vintage · Possibly deer friend
• Reubenclassic, vintage · Behold, a son
• Theodorevintage, classic · Gift of God
• Albievintage · A short form of Albert

Read the UK naming guide for the difference between inspiration lists and official statistics, or return to the full name finder.

Registering or changing the name

Once you decide on Tobias, confirm the registration process for your UK nation with the register office. If you later want to change a registered name, the route depends on the circumstances and may require consent from people with parental responsibility.

Start with GOV.UK birth registration or GOV.UK guidance on changing a child’s name. Our registration guide and child name-change guide explain where to find the relevant official process.