Fay
Fay was the 3795th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 39 babies. Its best year was 1907, when it ranked 202nd; the most babies were born in 1926 (722). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,553 places. More babies were named Fay in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Meaning (as Faye) fairy; also short for Faith · English, French
- Rank in 2025
- #3,795 girls, up 406 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 39girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 1926722 babies
- Total since 1880
- 36,177babies recorded
What does the name Fay mean?
Fay is a spelling of Faye, pronounced the same way, so it shares Faye's meaning and origin.
Faye is a variant spelling of Fay. As an English word, fay means a fairy, from Middle English faie and Old French fae, from Medieval Latin fada. The same idea appears in Arthurian legend, where the enchantress Morgan le Fay is "Morgan the fairy." Fay has also been explained as a short form of Faith, a virtue name DMNES dates in England to the 1560s. Separately, Fay is an Anglo-Irish surname from the Norman de Fae family.
fae (Old French, “fairy”)fāda (Medieval Latin, “fairy”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. The sources do not settle whether the first name came mainly from 'fay' (fairy), from Faith, or from the surname Fay; all three are proposed.
Related names: Fay, Fae, Faith.
See also: English names.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Faye' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wiktionary, entry 'Fay' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Wiktionary, entry 'fay' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- The American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th ed., entry 'fay' (etymology), HarperCollins / Houghton Mifflin Harcourt
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Faith', DMNES (Durham University)
Fay popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #3,795 | — | 39 | — |
| 2020 | #4,201 | — | 33 | — |
| 2010 | #6,037 | — | 22 | — |
| 2000 | #4,844 | — | 24 | — |
| 1990 | #3,940 | — | 26 | — |
| 1980 | #2,318 | — | 42 | — |
| 1970 | #1,480 | #4,948 | 68 | 5 |
| 1960 | #601 | #2,464 | 274 | 12 |
| 1950 | #413 | #1,671 | 376 | 20 |
| 1940 | #280 | #813 | 497 | 59 |
| 1930 | #251 | #686 | 614 | 83 |
| 1920 | #250 | #528 | 690 | 134 |
| 1910 | #205 | #588 | 316 | 24 |
| 1900 | #248 | #416 | 170 | 30 |
| 1890 | #250 | #353 | 99 | 25 |
| 1880 | #478 | #471 | 13 | 15 |
How popular is Fay, counting every spelling?
Fay is a spelling of Faye, a name family that ranked #498 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #3,795 for Fay on its own. Together these spellings went to 618 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Faye | 579 | #515 | 2,787 |
| Fay | 39 | #3,795 | 200 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Fay?
39 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Fay (0.01 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Fay born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 215 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Fay.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Fay?
About 9,300 people born in the US named Fay are alive today, with a median age of 73; half are between 62 and 82. That makes Fay a name most people associate with older generations.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Fay by state
How common Fay was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. In 47 states fewer than five girls a year got the name, too few for SSA to publish, so those states show as zero.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Fay: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Fay, they share its era and feel.
Questions about the name Fay
What does Fay mean?
Fay is a spelling of Faye, usually explained as “fairy; also short for Faith”, but this is uncertain. Certainty: uncertain.
How popular is the name Fay?
Fay was the 3795th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 39 babies. Its best year was 1907, when it ranked 202nd; the most babies were born in 1926 (722). Over the last ten years it has moved up 1,553 places. More babies were named Fay in the 1920s than in any other decade.
Is Fay a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Fay in the US.
Where is Fay most popular?
In 2021–2025, Fay was most common in New York (0.04 per 1,000 girls), followed by New Jersey and California.