Total births
56
Unisex name · since 1972
Shale
56 babies named Shale in U.S. Social Security records since 1972, with the highest year being 1999. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- 56
- total births
- 1972–2003
- years on record
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 68%
- born in that decade
Shale is not among the current top-ranked boys names; 56 have been recorded since 1972.
Shale has 56 recorded births among boys since 1972, per the U.S. Social Security Administration, though it falls outside today's most-used boys names, busiest in the 1990s -- see the year-by-year trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution below, all drawn directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1972 to 2003.
- 56 total births
- 1972–2003 years on record
- 1990s peak decade
- 68% born in that decade
Data updated Jul 2026
The verdict
56 boys have been named Shale since 1972, peaking in the 1990s, last recorded in 2003.
- 56
- total births
- 1972–2003
- years on record
- 1990s
- peak decade
- 68%
- born in that decade
1990s
Peak decade
68% of everyone ever named Shale was born in this single decade.
1999
Single peak year
9 babies were named Shale in 1999 - its busiest year on record.
Shale's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Shale's full recorded timeline at 1997, 57% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 43% in the earlier half -- a fairly even split across the full record. Its quietest year on record was 1993, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 1999 peak of 9 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Shale at a glance
Last recorded 2003Peak year
1999
Current rank
Unranked
Active since
1972
Shale popularity over time - boys
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1972–2003
- Peak year (1999)
- 9
- Annual births at peak, across 32 years of records
Shale popularity over time - girls
21 total births recorded since 1994 (Shale as girls' name)
Shale by decade
Total births in each ten-year window, peak vs trough at a glance
1990s was Shale's strongest decade.
38 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 68% of all-time use.
Shale births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1970s 8
1970s
8 births
- 1990s
1990s
38 births
- 2000s 10
2000s
10 births
What this shows Peak: 1990s at 38 births (68% of all-time use).
Frequently Asked Questions
How popular is the name Shale? ▼
Shale has been given to 56 babies in the U.S. since 1972, according to SSA data. Its last appearance in the data was 2003. 9 babies were born in 1999, its single highest year.
When was Shale most popular? ▼
Shale was most popular in the 1990s decade with 38 total births. The single peak year was 1999.
Is Shale a unisex name? ▼
Yes, Shale is used for both boys and girls. As a boy's name it has 56 births, and as a girl's name it has 21 births.
How long has the name Shale been used? ▼
Shale has been recorded in Social Security data since 1972, spanning 32 years of data through 2003.
What names are similar to Shale? ▼
Names with a similar sound or spelling include Shawn, Shane, Shaun, Shannon, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.
What to do with Shale's data
- Shale's decade-level peak was the 1990s (38 total births); usage has since declined to 10 in the 2000s -- if you're weighing a "classic revival" angle, the trend line argues against it.
- Weighing it against an alternative? Put two names side by side. Compare names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Shale
Nearby Names Like Shale
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Shale
Shawn Boy
#637 306,542 births
Shane Boy
#601 192,583 births
Shaun Boy
#1567 70,481 births
Shannon Boy
#2597 52,379 births
Shayne Boy
#4006 10,741 births
Compare Shale side by side: Shale vs Shawn Shale vs Shane Shale vs Shaun
Related Names
Names with a similar number of total births
Data Sources
Data as of July 2026. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).
According to the Social Security Administration, this profile draws directly from the agency's public-use baby-name files (updated June 2026). See our methodology for the full extraction, aggregation, and privacy-suppression rules.
Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications, National Data, 1972–2003 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
Cite this page
NameAlmanac Editorial. "Shale: Baby Name Since 1972 - 56 Births, Peak 1999." NameAlmanac. Accessed via https://namealmanac.com/name/shale. Licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.
Name Almanac is rendered directly from the Social Security Administration's public baby-name files, no number is typed in by an editor. This profile for Shale draws directly on SSA national and state-level files, no figure is typed in by an editor. See our editorial standards & corrections policy, the methodology behind these numbers, or report a data error. Data current as of July 2026.