Yvette is the French feminine form of Yves, a name of Germanic origin from the word iv, meaning "yew", the tree whose wood was used for bows. It arrived in America with the fashion for French names in the mid-20th century and was especially popular in the 1960s and among Latino families. Yvette ranked number 622 in 2000, left the US top 1000 soon after and stands at number 1630 in 2025.