Theo is a given name and a

hypocorism A hypocorism ( or ; from Ancient Greek: (), from (), 'to call by pet names', sometimes also ''hypocoristic'') or pet name is a name used to show affection for a person. It may be a diminutive form of a person's name, such as ''Izzy'' for I ...

Greek origin

Many names beginning with the root "Theo-" derive from the

Ancient Greek Ancient Greek includes the forms of the Greek language used in ancient Greece and the ancient world from around 1500 BC to 300 BC. It is often roughly divided into the following periods: Mycenaean Greek (), Dark Ages (), the Archaic p ...

word ''theos'' (''θεός''), which means god, for example: *Feminine names:

Thea Thea may refer to: * Thea (name), a given name * Ancient Greek term for goddess, including an alternative spelling of Theia * ''Thea'', the former name of the tea plant genus, now included in ''Camellia'' * Thea, a village in the municipal unit Me ...

, Theodora, Theodosia, Theophania, Theophano and Theoxena *Masculine names: Theodore, Theodoros/Theodorus,

Theodosius Theodosius ( Latinized from the Greek "Θεοδόσιος", Theodosios, "given by god") is a given name. It may take the form Teodósio, Teodosie, Teodosije etc. Theodosia is a feminine version of the name. Emperors of ancient Rome and Byzantium ...

, Theodotus, Theophanes, Theophilus, Theodoret and Theophylact

Germanic origin

Many other names beginning with "Theo-" do not necessarily derive from Greek, but rather the old Germanic "theud", meaning "people" or "folk". These names include: *

Theobald Theobald is a Germanic name, Germanic dithematic name, composed from the elements ''theodiscus, theod-'' "people" and ''bald'' "bold". The name arrived in England with the Norman Conquest, Normans. The name occurs in many spelling variations, incl ...

, Theodahad, Theodard,

Theodebert Theudebert (also Theodobert, Theudibert, Theodebert, Theodbert, Dietbert, Tibert, etc.E. W. Förstemann, ''Altdeutsches Namenbuch'', 18561168f./ref>) is a Germanic dithematic name, composed from the elements '' theo-'' "people" and ''bert'' "brig ...

, Theodemir, and

Theodoric Theodoric is a Germanic given name. First attested as a Gothic name in the 5th century, it became widespread in the Germanic-speaking world, not least due to its most famous bearer, Theodoric the Great, king of the Ostrogoths. Overview The name ...

People with the name Theo

See Theo and Théo for a current alphabetical list of all people with the first name Theo or Théo in the English Wikipedia. Among better known people with this name are: * Theo Adam (1926-2019), German classical bass-baritone * Theo Albrecht (1922–2010), German entrepreneur and billionaire * Theo Angelopoulos (1935–2012), Greek filmmaker, screenwriter and film producer * Theo Bos (born 1983), Dutch road and track cyclist, five-time world champion * Theo van Doesburg (1883–1931), Dutch artist, founder and leader of the De Stijl art movement * Theo Epstein (born 1973), American baseball executive, three-time World Series champion * Theo Fleury (born 1968), Canadian ice hockey player * Theo Geisel (1904–1991), American author better known as Dr. Seuss * Theo van Gogh (art dealer) (1857–1891), brother and supporter of painter

Vincent van Gogh Vincent Willem van Gogh (; 30 March 185329 July 1890) was a Dutch Post-Impressionist painter who posthumously became one of the most famous and influential figures in Western art history. In a decade, he created about 2,100 artworks, inc ...

* Theo van Gogh (film director) (1957–2004), Dutch film director, great-grandson of the above *

Theo Heemskerk Theodorus "Theo" Heemskerk (20 July 1852 – 12 June 1932) was a Dutch politician of the Anti-Revolutionary Party (ARP) who served as Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 12 February 1908 until 29 August 1913. Heemskerk is particularly known ...

(1852–1932), Dutch Prime Minister * Theo Hernandez (born 1997), French footballer * Theo Hutchcraft (born 1986), English singer and songwriter *

Theo Jackson (disambiguation) Theo Jackson may refer to: * Theo Jackson (musician) (born 1986), British jazz songwriter, pianist and vocalist * Theo Jackson (American football) (born 1998), American football player {{hndis, Jackson, Theo ...

, multiple people * Theo James (born 1984), English actor * Theo Jansen (born 1948), Dutch artist and kinetic sculptor * Theo Janssen (born 1981), Dutch footballer * Theo Jörgensmann (born 1948), German jazz clarinetist and composer *

Théo Lefèvre Théodore Joseph Albéric Marie "Théo" Lefèvre (17 January 1914 – 18 September 1973) was a lawyer at the Ghent court of justice. In 1946 he became deputy of the Belgian parliament for the PSC-CVP. Between 25 April 1961 and 28 July 1965 he wa ...

(1914–1973), Belgian Prime Minister * Theo Lingen (1903–1978), German actor, film director and screenwriter *

Theo Mackeben Relief from Mackeben's tombstone Theo Mackeben, born 5 January 1897 in Preußisch Stargard, Westpreußen, died 10 January 1953 in Berlin, was a German pianist, conductor and composer, particularly of film music.Lamb A. Theo Mackeben. In: ''The Ne ...

(1897–1953), German composer and conductor * Theo Osterkamp (1892–1975), German flying ace in both World War I and World War II *

Theo Pelouze Theo is a given name and a hypocorism. Greek origin Many names beginning with the root "Theo-" derive from the Ancient Greek word ''theos'' (''θεός''), which means god, for example: *Feminine names: Thea, Theodora, Theodosia, Theophania, ...

(1807–1867), French chemist * Theo de Raadt (born 1968), South African-born Canadian founder and leader of the OpenBSD and OpenSSH projects * Theo Ratliff (born 1973), American basketball player (Theophalus) * Theo Rossi (born 1975), American actor and producer * Théo van Rysselberghe (1862–1926), Belgian neo-impressionist painter * Théo Sarapo (1936–1970), French singer and actor, husband of Édith Piaf *

Theo Smyrnaeus Theon of Smyrna ( el, Θέων ὁ Σμυρναῖος ''Theon ho Smyrnaios'', ''gen.'' Θέωνος ''Theonos''; fl. 100 CE) was a Greek philosopher and mathematician, whose works were strongly influenced by the Pythagorean school of thought. Hi ...

(fl. 100 CE), Greek philosopher and mathematician (Theon) * Theo Sommer (1930–2022), German newspaper editor and intellectual *

Theo Timmer Theo Timmer (born 6 March 1949) is a former Grand Prix motorcycle road racer from the Netherlands. He had his best season in 1981 when he won the Czechoslovakian Grand Prix and finished the season in second place, behind Ricardo Tormo. In 1972 a ...

(born 1949), Dutch motorcycle racer *

Theo Timmermans (footballer born 1926) Theo Timmermans (4 January 1926 – 6 January 2004) was a Dutch footballer active from the mid-late 1940's. He played for 2 clubs starting at ADO '20 before joining Nîmes in 1949 and then moving back to ADO '20 in 1954. Timmermans wore the number ...

, Dutch footballer * Theo Timmermans (born 1989), Dutch footballer * Theo Von (born 1980), American stand-up comedian, television personality, host, and actor * Theo Waigel (born 1939), German politician, known as the father of the Euro * Theo Walcott (born 1989), English footballer * Theo Zagorakis (born 1971), Greek footballer and politician

Fictional characters

* Theo, the self-proclaimed 'King of All the Land', protagonist of ''Ultra Jump Mania'' and Tari's first companion in the '' Meta Runner'' web series * Theo Decker, main character in Donna Tartt's novel ''The Goldfinch'' * Theo Faron, the main character in P.D. James's 1992 novel ''

The Children of Men ''The Children of Men'' is a dystopian novel by English writer P. D. James, published in 1992. Set in England in 2021, it centres on the results of mass infertility. James describes a United Kingdom that is steadily depopulating and focuses ...

'' and of the 2006 film '' Children of Men'' based on the novel * Theo Fobius, in the webcomic ''Schlock Mercenary'' * Theo Kojak, lead character of the '' Kojak'' television series * Theo Raeken, a fictional character in the 2011-2017 TV series '' Teen Wolf'' * Theo Saville, one of the main characters on the television series '' A Million Little Things'', son of Eddie and Katherine

References

{{given name Masculine given names Dutch masculine given names Hypocorisms English masculine given names

Greek origin

Germanic origin

People with the name Theo

Fictional characters

See also

References