Unisex name · since 1953
Shay
8,227 babies named Shay in U.S. Social Security records since 1953, with the highest year being 2022. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.
- #1,880 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,225 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 8,227
- born since 1953
- 2020s
- peak decade
8,227 babies have been named Shay since 1953, making it today's #1225 unisex name.
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Shay has been recorded 8,227 times among girls since 1953, currently ranked #1225 nationally and more common than 93% of girls, with its heaviest use in the 2020s. This profile covers year-by-year birth trends, decade totals, and state-level distribution, all derived directly from SSA birth-registration files spanning 1953 to 2025.
- #1,880 of 72,339 all-time among girls
- #1,225 of 17,297 2025 SSA year
- 8,227 born since 1953
- 2020s peak decade
Data updated Aug 2026
The verdict
According to the U.S. Social Security Administration, Shay ranks #1,880 of 72,339 girls' names by all-time recorded births (highest first) and #1,225 of 17,297 among girls' names in 2025. 8,227 born since 1953, peaking in the 2020s.
- #1,880 of 72,339
- all-time among girls
- #1,225 of 17,297
- 2025 SSA year
- 8,227
- born since 1953
- 2020s
- peak decade
Shay's 8,227 recorded births place it above 97.4% of the 72,339 girls names in the full SSA archive.
35 jurisdictions carry state-level records, led by California.
How Shay compares
8,227 Top 11% higher than 89% of 17,297 names currently given to girls
Based on all-time total births among currently-ranked girls names. Names with fewer occurrences are grouped into wider buckets on the right.
Source U.S. Social Security Administration, national baby name data
How the numbers stack up
Shay's all-time total is 22x the median girls name, and Olivia still leads by a wide margin.
| Metric | Shay | Median girls name (Kyann) | #1 girls name (Olivia) |
|---|---|---|---|
| All-time total births | 8,227 | 376 | 567,345 |
| Peak-year births | 301 | 21 | 19,840 |
Shay's usage pattern, beyond the headline number
Splitting Shay's full recorded timeline at 1989, 71% of its total births fall in the more recent half of the record versus 29% in the earlier half -- usage has skewed toward the present, not a one-decade spike. Its quietest year on record was 1955, with just 5 recorded births -- worth weighing against the 2022 peak of 301 to see the full range of the name's swing in popularity.
Shay popularity over time - girls
Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 1953–2025
- Peak year (2022)
- 301
- Annual births at peak, across 73 years of records
Shay popularity over time - boys
5,024 total births recorded since 1932 (Shay as boys' name)
Shay by decade
2020s is the heaviest window (1,525 births, 19% of the file).
2020s was Shay's strongest decade.
1,525 babies received the name during that ten-year window, about 19% of all-time use.
Shay births by decade
Total births in each ten-year window
- 1950s 55
1950s
55 births
- 1960s 275
1960s
275 births
- 1970s
1970s
1,086 births
- 1980s
1980s
1,067 births
- 1990s
1990s
1,449 births
- 2000s
2000s
1,323 births
- 2010s
2010s
1,447 births
- 2020s
2020s
1,525 births
What this shows Peak: 2020s at 1,525 births (19% of all-time use).
How Shay compares to similarly-sized names
Years in SSA records vs. share of all-time use concentrated in the single peak year, among 15 girls names closest to Shay's total volume
Shay by state
Where Shay concentrates geographically, total births since 1953
| Rank | State | Visual share | Births | Share of total |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| #1 | California | | 883 | 10.7% |
| #2 | Texas | | 613 | 7.5% |
| #3 | Illinois | | 305 | 3.7% |
| #4 | New York | | 300 | 3.6% |
| #5 | Florida | | 295 | 3.6% |
| #6 | Pennsylvania | | 228 | 2.8% |
| #7 | Ohio | | 221 | 2.7% |
| #8 | Michigan | | 212 | 2.6% |
883 of 8,227 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 35 reporting states.
Shay appears in 35 states. Explore state details →
Frequently Asked Questions
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What to do with Shay's data
- California records the most Shays (883 births) -- see the full state breakdown if geography matters to your decision. California names
Figures reflect SSA-reported births only; see the methodology above for the privacy-suppression floor.
Keep exploring Shay
Nearby Names Like Shay
Names with a similar sound, spelling, or feel to Shay
Compare Shay side by side: Shay vs Sharon Shay vs Shannon Shay vs Shawna
Related Names
Names with a similar popularity rank to Shay
Nationwide names with similar peak year or record span
Two nationwide peer axes for Shay: closest SSA peak year, and closest first→latest record span. Distinct from the spelling and current-rank neighborhoods above.
Similar peak year (~2022)
Similar record span (~72 yrs)
Peak year is the single SSA year with the most births for that name; record span is first-to-latest year in the national files, not a recommendation or shared origin claim.
Data Sources
Data as of August 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, 1953–2025 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames).
State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names, State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip).
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 Shay 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 August 2026.