Shay

Meaning: Descendant of Séaghdha, a name meaning fine or fortunate
Origin: Irish surname — Variant of Shea

Meaning: Supplanter, holder of the heel
Origin: Hebrew — Short form of Seamus, the Irish form of James

Boy's name · #1989 in the US (2025) · Timeless

28% boys · 72% girls — About 72% of babies named Shay in recent years have been girls. Shay →

Popularity over time

Few names move less than Shay — on the books since 1932, #1989 in 2025, and dependable in between. Roughly 5,000 boys have carried the name since.

Across the states

See where Shay is more common.

Appears in 2020-2025 birth records of 9 states. See the full state-by-state map on this page.

Around the world

See how Shay ranks in other countries and regions.

#52 in Ireland (2025) · #212 in N. Ireland (2025) · #226 in Scotland (2025) · #529 in England & Wales (2025) · #2,144 in Sweden (2025) · #2,789 in Canada (2025) · #2,982 in France (2025) · #3,314 in Austria (2022) · #23,399 in Italy (2022) · #7,535 in Ecuador (2020) · #298 in New Zealand (2009).

Famous Shays

Shay Given — Irish footballer (born 1976)
Shay Hatten — American screenwriter (born 1994)
Shay Haley — American rapper, singer, songwriter, musician and record producer (born 1975)
Shay Whitcomb — American baseball player (born 1998)
Shay Carl — American video blogger and YouTube personality (born 1980)

In stories & tradition

Shay Patrick Cormac — Assassin's Creed character

What Shays become

Among 177 notable people named Shay:

Sports figures appear 2.3× more often than among typical names — e.g. Shay Given, Irish footballer (born 1976).

Similar names: Sai · Kasey · Zach · Esai · Blair · Oshea

Browse more boy names — popularity, trends and eras for 5,700+ American names, free.

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