first name
FAY
of 53,615 first names recorded in the 2020 Census
Of the 13,775 people named Fay, 71.6% reported their origin as White, 15.8% as Black and 7.2% as Asian or Pacific Islander. 95.1% are female. These count how people described themselves on the 2020 Census, not where the name comes from.
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Fay peaked in 1915, when 842 babies got the name.
At least 36,177 babies have been given the name since 1880. Years SSA withheld, because fewer than 5 were born, are skipped rather than drawn as zero. * 2025 is the newest year published and it undercounts: a card application is filed some time after a birth.
Fay by decade
Among all names given to American babies, its best decade was the 1900s, when it ranked #299. The largest share of babies named Fay, 40.3%, were born between 1901 and 1927, the Greatest Generation's birth years.
Rank counts both sexes together, among every name SSA recorded that decade; the number under it is births. The 2020s run only to 2025. Generation years follow Pew Research Center, which has not named a generation after 2012.
Where Fay is most common
Compared with all babies born in each state since 1910, Fay has been most common in Arkansas (3.1×), Hawaii (2×), and Oklahoma (1.9×), and least common in Colorado (0.18×).
25,728 births recorded by state, 1910–2025. 2× means twice as common as nationally. States with fewer than 30 such births are left blank, and SSA withholds any year with fewer than 5 in a state, so small states read low.
Either side of Fay
Spelled almost the same
4 first names in the 2020 Census spelled within a letter or two of Fay, most common first.
Also a last name
As a last name, Fay ranks #2,493 of 156,621, with 14,132 people. See Fay as a last name
Compare
🔎 FAY 🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦🟦⬜⬜ 1 in 21,926 Americans Rarer than 78% of us Peaked in 1915 with 842 babies Beat that 👇 https://howrareismy.name/first/fay/