Jeff
Meaning and origin
Wiktionary describes it as a diminutive of the male given names Jeffrey, Jeffery, Jefferey, Jeffry, and Jefferson. From Jeffrey, a variant of Geoffrey, from Middle English Geffrey, from an Old French aristocratic name, Geoffroi [dʒɔfreʲ] (> West Middle French Geoffrey, East Middle French Geoffroy), itself from Proto-French forms (latinized in -us) Jotfredus, Jozsfredus, Josfredus (10th century) and Jof[f]redus, Jofridus, Jaufredus, Geffredus (11th century), and ultimately of Proto-Germanic origin. The second element is *friþuz (“peace, sanctuary”).
Source: Wiktionary, English entry for Jeff (CC BY-SA 4.0). This is the origin of the name in English; families in Sweden may have taken it from another language.
Popularity in Sweden
Among newborns, Jeff has been falling over the last few years. Its best year between 1998 and 2022 was 2017. The figures are for this exact spelling; other spellings of the name are counted on their own.
Years with fewer than two babies (fewer than ten before 2004) show as zero in the chart and as – in the table.
Show the figures
| Year | Boys |
|---|---|
| 1998 | – |
| 1999 | – |
| 2000 | – |
| 2001 | – |
| 2002 | – |
| 2003 | – |
| 2004 | 5 |
| 2005 | 3 |
| 2006 | 2 |
| 2007 | – |
| 2008 | – |
| 2009 | – |
| 2010 | 5 |
| 2011 | 2 |
| 2012 | 2 |
| 2013 | 2 |
| 2014 | 2 |
| 2015 | 4 |
| 2016 | 2 |
| 2017 | 7 |
| 2018 | 4 |
| 2019 | 5 |
| 2020 | 2 |
| 2021 | – |
| 2022 | 2 |
Everyone registered in Sweden on 31 December with this as the first name they use.
Show the figures
| Year | Men and boys |
|---|---|
| 1999 | 334 |
| 2000 | 341 |
| 2001 | 348 |
| 2002 | 351 |
| 2003 | 350 |
| 2004 | 357 |
| 2005 | 356 |
| 2006 | 362 |
| 2007 | 361 |
| 2008 | 364 |
| 2009 | 367 |
| 2010 | 373 |
| 2011 | 376 |
| 2012 | 381 |
| 2013 | 379 |
| 2014 | 383 |
| 2015 | 387 |
| 2016 | 388 |
| 2017 | 390 |
| 2018 | 394 |
| 2019 | 397 |
| 2020 | 397 |
Jeff in a sentence
- Hej! Jag heter Jeff.Hi! My name is Jeff.
- Jeff har bott i Uppsala i tre år.Jeff has lived in Uppsala for three years.
- Jeffs mamma är lärare.Jeff's mum is a teacher.
Swedish shows possession with a plain -s and no apostrophe: Jeffs mamma is Jeff's mum.
More names
Questions about Jeff
How do you pronounce Jeff in Swedish?
Press Listen at the top of the page to hear Jeff in your device's Swedish voice.
What does the name Jeff mean?
Wiktionary describes it as a diminutive of the male given names Jeffrey, Jeffery, Jefferey, Jeffry, and Jefferson. From Jeffrey, a variant of Geoffrey, from Middle English Geffrey, from an Old French aristocratic name, Geoffroi [dʒɔfreʲ] (> West Middle French Geoffrey, East Middle French Geoffroy), itself from Proto-French forms (latinized in -us) Jotfredus, Jozsfredus, Josfredus (10th century) and Jof[f]redus, Jofridus, Jaufredus, Geffredus (11th century), and ultimately of Proto-Germanic origin. The second element is *friþuz (“peace, sanctuary”).
How popular is Jeff in Sweden?
2 babies were named Jeff in 2022. In 2020, 397 people in Sweden had Jeff as the first name they go by. Among newborns the name has been falling lately and peaked in 2017 in the years SCB covers (1998–2022).
Popularity figures: Statistics Sweden (SCB), name statistics (BE0001) from the Statistical Database, released as open data under CC0. Each spelling is counted as its own name, as SCB does. SCB's open name statistics end with babies named in 2022 and the population on 31 December 2020; SCB stopped producing name statistics in 2024 and now points to the Swedish Tax Agency (Skatteverket) for newer figures.
Origins, IPA and recordings: Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0), via kaikki.org; recordings from Lingua Libre on Wikimedia Commons (CC BY-SA). Lingolib is not affiliated with SCB or Wiktionary. Sources last checked 7 October 2026.