Fay
Girl name · #3780 in 2025 · Uniqueness 70/100
Fay is currently the #3780 girl name in the United States — 39 babies received it in 2025. A decade ago it stood at #5288, so the name has been rising over the past ten years. Roughly one in every 46,154 girls born in 2025 was named Fay.
The 145-year story
Fay first appears in the Social Security records in 1880, when 13 girls received the name. Its peak came in 1926, when 722 girls were named Fay — good for #243 that year. Today's parents encounter it as a name from their grandparents’ generation, which is precisely the vintage window from which names get revived. Following the curve matters more than today's snapshot: a name's position on its rise-peak-decline arc is the best predictor of how common it will feel in a kindergarten class five years from now.
Babies named Fay per year, 1880–2025. Source: SSA.
Unlock the 5-year forecast and compare Fay against up to 5 other names.
Uniqueness: will there be another Fay in class?
Fay scores 70 out of 100 on our uniqueness scale, which blends current rarity with five-year momentum — putting it in the "rare" band. A high score means genuine rarity — your Fay will likely be the only one in the room, with the occasional spelling-out as the price.
Where Fay is most common
State-level data for Fay is sparse in 2025 — the name's footprint is too small for most states to report (the SSA suppresses counts under 5 per state for privacy).
Names like Fay
Statistically, parents drawn to Fay tend to be choosing among names with similar popularity arcs, era profiles, and sounds — the closest matches in our model are Kay, Ora, Wilma, Rhoda, and Ina.
KayOraWilmaRhodaInaFannieFriedaDolly
Rank history (last 25 years)
| Year | Babies named Fay | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 39 | #3780 |
| 2024 | 46 | #3395 |
| 2023 | 34 | #4191 |
| 2022 | 38 | #3893 |
| 2021 | 43 | #3553 |
| 2020 | 33 | #4169 |
| 2019 | 38 | #3851 |
| 2018 | 39 | #3789 |
| 2017 | 26 | #5045 |
| 2016 | 45 | #3464 |
| 2015 | 25 | #5288 |
| 2014 | 34 | #4269 |
| 2013 | 26 | #5143 |
| 2012 | 30 | #4707 |
| 2011 | 26 | #5207 |
| 2010 | 22 | #5977 |
| 2009 | 26 | #5378 |
| 2008 | 20 | #6559 |
| 2007 | 26 | #5377 |
| 2006 | 27 | #5086 |
| 2005 | 16 | #7138 |
| 2004 | 25 | #5062 |
| 2003 | 25 | #4943 |
| 2002 | 23 | #5086 |
| 2001 | 17 | #6322 |
Frequently asked questions
Is Fay a popular girl name?
Fay ranked #3780 among girls in 2025 with 39 babies given the name — outside the top 500, making it an uncommon pick. Ten years earlier it ranked #5288.
When was the name Fay most popular?
Fay peaked in 1926, when 722 American girls received the name (ranked #243 that year). Since 1926 the name has declined from that high.
How rare is the name Fay?
In 2025, roughly 1 in 46,154 newborn American girls was named Fay. It scores 70/100 on our uniqueness scale (rarity blended with momentum), which we classify as "rare".
Data source: U.S. Social Security Administration name statistics, 1880–2025, national and state files. Counts reflect Social Security card applications; names with fewer than 5 occurrences in a state-year are suppressed by the SSA.