Given name & surname
Gaye
“blithe”·“cheerful”
Gaye is a variant of Gay. The English word-name reflects the older sense “blithe” or “cheerful.” This interpretation does not describe the separate Irish form of Gabriel.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Gaye is a variant of Gay. The English word-name reflects the older sense “blithe” or “cheerful.” This interpretation does not describe the separate Irish form of Gabriel.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Gaye is a variant of Gay. The English name draws on a word transmitted through Old French with Germanic roots. The Irish pet name belongs to the Gabriel family.
Explained through its name family
How it developed
Gaye is a variant of Gay. The shared background comes through Gay: One route takes the English vocabulary word gay as a name; another shortens Gabriel in Irish use.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1909. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin. Gaye is a variant of Gay. The history of Gay gives this family its wider story. The English word-name came into use in the twentieth century and has been borne by women and men.
Combines direct and name-family evidence
Gaye through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 5,746
- 0 boys · 5,746 girls
- Most popular year
- 1960
- 268 babies
- 2025
- 0
- Outside the ranked list
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- —
- Too few births to compare
By the numbers
The most recent published U.S. birth count for girls is 8 in 1976. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for girls was 268 in 1960. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 4,601 as a first name in 2020; 1,977 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.
The ring: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 1
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
People named Gaye
- Gaye StewartCanadian ice hockey player (1923-2010)
- Gaye Su AkyolTurkish singer, painter and anthropologist (born 1985)
- Gaye AdegbalolaAmerican blues singer and guitaristborn 1944
- Gaye AdvertEnglish punk rock bass guitaristborn 1956
- Gaye GürselTurkish actor (born 1980)
- Gaye DellAustralian artist and hurdlerborn 1948
- Gaye TurgutTurkish actor (born 1987)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Gaye, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Raye
“son of grace” · “a wise protector”
>99% girls
Raylene
“son of grace”
>99% girls
Deirdre
“a brokenhearted or raging woman”
>99% girls
Janine
“God is gracious”
>99% girls
Ginny
“one who is chaste; virginal”
>99% girls
Jayne
“God is gracious”
1% boys · 99% girls
Alaine
“beautiful and fair woman; dear child”
>99% girls
Gigi
“of God's promise; a hostage” · “of the beginning; the first book of the Bible”
>99% girls