Kay

Kay: name meaning, origin & popularity

Meaning: “rejoice”
Origin: English
Say it: KAY · 1 syllable
Used for: Girls (96% of all uses)

Usually a short form of Katherine, Kate, or names beginning with K. It is also used as an independent name; in some cases it may reflect the name Cai or the letter K.

English names Names meaning joy Short names Classic names

How popular is Kay?

202415.6 per million US babies

Drag the line or the slider to read any year. Values are per million US births recorded by Social Security. Records before about 1937 undercount births, so early peaks can look taller than they were.

Compare with another name

Babies named Kay in 202452

2024 rank#3,881 girls

Peak year1939

Total US babies since 1880102,497

Kay is steady now but far below its 1939 peak.

Names like Kay

Variants, related forms and names with the same roots.

Catalinapure · Spanish
Katherinepure · Greek
Catherinepure · Greek
Karenpure · Danish
Katiepure · English
Kathrynpure · Greek
Katepure · Greek
Caitlinpure · Irish

Kay questions

What does the name Kay mean?

Kay means "rejoice". It comes from English. Usually a short form of Katherine, Kate, or names beginning with K. It is also used as an independent name; in some cases it may reflect the name Cai or the letter K.

Is Kay a boy or girl name?

Kay is mainly a girl's name in US records (96% of uses since 1880).

How popular is Kay?

52 US babies were named Kay in 2024. Its peak year was 1939.

How do you pronounce Kay?

Kay is usually pronounced KAY.

Birth counts: US Social Security Administration national data, 1880–2024 (names given to 5+ babies of a sex in a year). How we write meanings.