Given name & surname
Faye
Faye is a feminine given name from French. It is used in English and French.
Meaning & origin
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1880. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Faye through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 72,660
- 518 boys · 72,142 girls
- Most popular year
- 1943
- 1,478 babies
- 2025
- 579
- #515 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +39%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 579 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 515 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 39.4% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 1,468 in 1943. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for girls with this name (60). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 37,526 as a first name in 2020; 2,073 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Faye’s family of names
Faye has a related form in Fay. In English usage, Faye has a conventional equivalent in the Greek form Φαίη.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Spellings & scripts 1
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Faye
- Faye WhiteEnglish association football player (born 1978)
- Faye MarsayBritish actressborn 1986
- Faye GrantAmerican actressborn 1957
- Faye KellermanAmerican writer of mystery novelsborn 1952
- Faye EmersonAmerican actress (1917–1983)
- Faye NjieFinnish judoka (1993-)
- Faye Glenn AbdellahAmerican nurse (1919-2017)
- Faye AdamsAmerican singer1923–2016
- Faye D'SouzaIndian journalist and news presenter (born 1981)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Faye, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Jane
“God is gracious” · “one who is fair; a beautiful girl”
>99% girls
Elaine
“the shining light” · “resembling a fawn”
>99% girls
Francine
“woman from France; one who is free”
>99% girls
Joanne
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Rosalie
“of the rose garden”
>99% girls
Jeanne
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Loretta
“crowned with laurel; from the laurel tree”
>99% girls
Linda
“one who is soft and beauti-”
>99% girls