Given name & surname
Sy
“a gentleman”
In English use, Sy has a related form in Si. One Vietnamese interpretation is “a gentleman.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Sy has a related form in Si. One Vietnamese interpretation is “a gentleman.”
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
In English use, Sy has a related form in Si. An origin associated with Si is Vietnamese.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1917. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Sy through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 972
- 972 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2003
- 33 babies
- 2025
- 10
- #8,166 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −7%
- Steady
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 10 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 8,166 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 7.1% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 33 in 2003. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,943 as a first name in 2020; 5,206 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.
Sy’s family of names
In Cebuano usage, Sy as a surname shares an earlier linguistic root with SHI. In English usage, Sy has a related form in Si. In Cebuano usage, Sy as a surname shares an earlier linguistic root with SEE.
Inner ring: spellings · middle: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Sy has relatives in 4 languages.
6 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 2
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 3
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
People named Sy
- Sy BarryAmerican cartoonistborn 1928
- Sy BartlettUkrainian-American screenwriter and producer1900–1978
- Sy FriedmanAmerican mathematicianborn 1953
- Sy JohnsonAmerican musician (1930–2022)
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Sy, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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