Sue
Sue was the 9387th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 11 babies. Its best year was 1946, when it ranked 61st; the most babies were born in 1947 (5,306). Over the last ten years it has moved down 501 places. More babies were named Sue in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Meaning short form of Susan, 'lily' · English, Hebrew
Say it SOO /su/
- Rank in 2025
- #9,387 girls
- Babies in 2025
- 11girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 19475,306 babies
- Total since 1880
- 145,055babies recorded
What does the name Sue mean?
Sue is a short form of Susan and related names such as Susanna and Suzanne, as Wiktionary notes; it was very popular as a middle name in the US. Susan comes from Hebrew Shoshannah 'lily', which DMNES also glosses 'rose'. The Johnny Cash song 'A Boy Named Sue' (1969) plays on its use as a girls' name.
שׁוֹשַׁנָּה (Shoshannah) (Biblical Hebrew, “lily”)
How sure is this? Well established.
Related names: Susan, Susanna, Suzy, Susie.
See also: Hebrew names, names that mean flower.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Sue', Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- Dictionary of Medieval Names from European Sources, ed. S. L. Uckelman, Edition 2023 no. 1, s.v. 'Susan', DMNES (Durham University)
Nicknames for Sue
The usual nicknames for Sue are Susie. Some parents skip the long form: for every 100 girls named Sue in the last five years, 1012 were named Susie, against 357 twenty years earlier.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Susie · also for Susan | Traditional | #1,922 | 435 |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Sues go by each one.
Sue popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 519 since 1917.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #9,387 | 11 |
| 2020 | — | — |
| 2010 | #7,475 | 17 |
| 2000 | #3,652 | 36 |
| 1990 | #1,904 | 74 |
| 1980 | #543 | 347 |
| 1970 | #367 | 666 |
| 1960 | #120 | 4,009 |
| 1950 | #100 | 3,503 |
| 1940 | #81 | 3,104 |
| 1930 | #167 | 1,213 |
| 1920 | #246 | 707 |
| 1910 | #231 | 277 |
| 1900 | #261 | 157 |
| 1890 | #223 | 120 |
| 1880 | #190 | 65 |
How popular is Sue, counting every spelling?
Sue is the most common spelling of a name family that had 20 girls in 2025 across its spellings. Together these spellings went to 20 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sue | 11 | #9,387 | 43 |
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 Sue?
11 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Sue (0.00 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Sue 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 750 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Sue.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Sue?
About 83,600 people born in the US named Sue are alive today, with a median age of 71; half are between 65 and 79. That makes Sue 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.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Sue: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Sue, they share its era and feel.
Sue is also a nickname for Susan.
Questions about the name Sue
What does Sue mean?
Sue means “short form of Susan, 'lily'” (English, Hebrew origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Sue?
Sue was the 9387th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 11 babies. Its best year was 1946, when it ranked 61st; the most babies were born in 1947 (5,306). Over the last ten years it has moved down 501 places. More babies were named Sue in the 1940s than in any other decade.
Is Sue a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Sue in the US.