Given name & surname
Lay
“a dark-skinned man”
Lay is a variant of Lae. One interpretation is “a dark-skinned man.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
Lay is a variant of Lae. One interpretation is “a dark-skinned man.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
As a Khmer surname, it comes from Khmer ឡាយ.
Adapted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0)
How it developed
In English usage, Lay as a surname developed from ឡាយ.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1918. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Lay through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 40
- 28 boys · 12 girls
- Most popular year
- 2014
- 12 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 boys is 7 in 2016. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,595 as a first name in 2020; 18,585 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.
Lay’s family of names
In English usage, Lay as a surname developed from the Khmer form ឡាយ. Lay has a related form in Lae. In English usage, Lay as a surname has a related form in Lee.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Lay has relatives in 3 languages.
3 related names in 3 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 1
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Lay, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Lane
“one who takes the narrow path”
93% boys · 7% girls
Ali
“the great one; one who is exalted”
92% boys · 8% girls
Blake
“a dark beauty” · “a dark, handsome man”
60% boys · 40% girls
Lian
“of the willow”
90% boys · 10% girls
Rylan
“from the place where rye is grown”
78% boys · 22% girls
Finley
“a fair-haired hero”
46% boys · 54% girls
Dallas
“from the valley meadow” · “from the dales; from the city in Texas”
74% boys · 26% girls
Noel
“born at Christmastime”
81% boys · 19% girls