Thirty years of Thea
Thea in numbers
Thea has risen from 60 girls in 1996 to 686 in 2025, though it is below its peak of 1,132 in 2016. Its biggest three-year rise came between 2012 and 2015, from 222 to 1,020. It ranked 470th in 1996, reached 46th in 2019 and ranks 66th now. On average it was given to 81 girls a year in the late 1990s, 168 in the 2000s, 694 in the 2010s and 772 in the 2020s so far.
† Shapes, averages and turning points are Baby Data calculations from the ONS counts.
Milestones
First year in each bandChange
- On last year+0%686 to 686
- 5 years-20%858 to 686
- 10 years-33%1,020 to 686
- 20 years+279%181 to 686
- Since 1996×1160 to 686
- Total, 1996 to 202513,574girls
† All changes and totals are Baby Data calculations from ONS counts. A total adds only the published years.
Across the three nations, 2025
Each from its own statistics office, never added togetherRank 66 · ONS · 686 in 2024
Rank 69 · NRS · 66 in 2024
Rank 96 · NISRA · 27 in 2024
England and Wales (ONS) count births in the calendar year; Scotland (NRS) and Northern Ireland (NISRA) count births registered in the year. Each comes from its own statistics office and they are never added together.
Year by year, 1996 to 2025 Show all 30 yearsHide the table
| Year | Rank | Babies | Change† | 1 in X† |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 66 | 686 | +0% | 1 in 415 |
| 2024 | 66 | 686 | -4% | 1 in 422 |
| 2023 | 63 | 716 | -7% | 1 in 402 |
| 2022 | 64 | 768 | -16% | 1 in 384 |
| 2021 | =53 | 917 | +7% | 1 in 332 |
| 2020 | 57 | 858 | -18% | 1 in 349 |
| 2019 | 46 | 1,052 | +14% | 1 in 296 |
| 2018 | 59 | 920 | -12% | 1 in 347 |
| 2017 | 53 | 1,041 | -8% | 1 in 318 |
| 2016 | =49 | 1,132 | +11% | 1 in 300 |
| 2015 | =58 | 1,020 | +50% | 1 in 333 |
| 2014 | 79 | 678 | +46% | 1 in 499 |
| 2013 * | =121 | 463 | +109% | 1 in 738 |
| 2012 | =225 | 222 | +5% | 1 in 1,601 |
| 2011 | =235 | 212 | +8% | 1 in 1,665 |
| 2010 | 256 | 197 | +7% | 1 in 1,788 |
| 2009 | =260 | 184 | -11% | 1 in 1,870 |
| 2008 | =241 | 206 | -5% | 1 in 1,678 |
| 2007 | =235 | 217 | +11% | 1 in 1,546 |
| 2006 | =239 | 196 | +8% | 1 in 1,669 |
| 2005 | 249 | 181 | +6% | 1 in 1,742 |
| 2004 | =256 | 170 | +22% | 1 in 1,832 |
| 2003 | =287 | 139 | +11% | 1 in 2,180 |
| 2002 | =291 | 125 | -2% | 1 in 2,320 |
| 2001 | =292 | 127 | -7% | 1 in 2,283 |
| 2000 | =282 | 136 | +46% | 1 in 2,168 |
| 1999 | =346 | 93 | -10% | 1 in 3,254 |
| 1998 | 336 | 103 | +49% | n/a |
| 1997 | =433 | 69 | +15% | 1 in 4,544 |
| 1996 | =470 | 60 | 1 in 5,266 |
* ONS’s girls’ 2013 file repeats the May total as April, so the 2013 births total is about 1,360 too high and 1 in X for 2013 is slightly too high. 1 in X is not shown for girls in 1998: one monthly total is missing from the ONS girls’ 1998 file. Rank follows ONS: names with the same count share a rank (shown with =). “Under 3” means the name was given to fewer than 3 babies that year, so ONS did not publish it.
Compare Thea
Draws the second name on the chart above, on a shared scale.
Share and download
Thea is in the free dataset (CSV and JSON), with the method and how to cite it.
Source: Office for National Statistics, Baby names in England and Wales, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0; National Records of Scotland; NISRA. Exact spellings are counted separately and names given to fewer than 3 babies are not published. Figures marked † are Baby Data calculations. How we calculate
Thea is in our lists: Short baby names.