Teddy is the affectionate short form of Theodore, Greek for "gift of God", and historically also of Edward. President Theodore Roosevelt bore the nickname, and the teddy bear is named after him. Riding on the boom of Theodore, Teddy has become a stand-alone name: it climbed from number 1716 in 2015, entered the US top 1000 in 2023 and reached number 823 in 2025, its best rank so far.