Sunny
Sunny was the 390th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 798 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 370th with 846 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 771 places. More babies were named Sunny in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning sunny, cheerful · English
Say it SUN-ee /ˈsʌni/
- Rank in 2025
- #390 girls, up 301 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 798girls
- Girls and boys
- 79% girls, 21% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 2024846 babies
- Total since 1880
- 17,697babies recorded
What does the name Sunny mean?
Sunny is the English word for bright and sunlit, and figuratively cheerful, used as a nickname and given name for both boys and girls. Wiktionary also notes it as a pet form of South Asian names such as Sunil, Sunita and Sundeep. In English-speaking use it is usually chosen for the word's cheerful meaning. Dictionary.com traces sunny to sun plus -y.
sunne (Old English, “sun”)
How sure is this? Well established. The English word is clear; some bearers have it as a pet form of Indian names.
Related names: Sonny, Sunshine, Sunil.
See also: English names, names that mean joy, names that mean sky, star, moon or sun.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Sunny', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation)
- Dictionary.com Unabridged (based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary), with Collins English Dictionary, s.v. 'sunny', Dictionary.com / Random House / HarperCollins
- CMU Pronouncing Dictionary (cmudict), Carnegie Mellon University
Sunny popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #390 | #1,078 | 798 | 200 |
| 2020 | #691 | #1,469 | 412 | 117 |
| 2010 | #1,285 | #2,032 | 186 | 68 |
| 2000 | #1,658 | #1,640 | 107 | 72 |
| 1990 | #1,492 | #1,147 | 105 | 90 |
| 1980 | #807 | #2,106 | 201 | 26 |
| 1970 | #1,350 | #2,049 | 78 | 20 |
| 1960 | #2,087 | #4,540 | 31 | 5 |
| 1950 | #1,599 | #2,310 | 35 | 12 |
| 1940 | #1,180 | #2,170 | 39 | 12 |
| 1930 | #2,014 | #2,065 | 18 | 15 |
| 1920 | #2,714 | #4,223 | 13 | 6 |
| 1910 | — | #1,812 | — | 5 |
| 1900 | — | #1,483 | — | 5 |
| 1890 | — | — | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — | — | — |
How popular is Sunny, counting every spelling?
Sunny is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #322 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #390 for Sunny on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,019 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Sunny | 798 | #390 | 3,412 |
| Sunnie | 221 | #1,094 | 820 |
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 Sunny?
798 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Sunny (0.22 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Sunny 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 11 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Sunny.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Sunny?
About 12,300 people born in the US named Sunny are alive today, with a median age of 17; half are between 5 and 44. That makes Sunny mostly worn by children and young adults. The wide spread shows a name popular in two different eras.
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.
Sunny by state
How common Sunny was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Utah (4.0×), Idaho (3.1×), Oklahoma (2.5×), Oregon (2.2×), Nebraska (2.0×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Connecticut, Mississippi, West Virginia.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Sunny: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Sunny, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Sunny · Sibling names for Sunny
Questions about the name Sunny
What does Sunny mean?
Sunny means “sunny, cheerful” (English origin). Certainty: well established.
How popular is the name Sunny?
Sunny was the 390th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 798 babies. Its best year was 2024, when it ranked 370th with 846 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved up 771 places. More babies were named Sunny in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Sunny a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 79% girls, 21% boys given the name Sunny in the US.
Where is Sunny most popular?
In 2021–2025, Sunny was most common in Utah (1.67 per 1,000 girls), followed by Idaho and Oklahoma.