Given name & surname
Wray
“a wise protector”
In English use, Wray has a related form in Ray. In English use, Ray carries the interpretation “a wise protector.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
In English use, Wray has a related form in Ray. In English use, Ray carries the interpretation “a wise protector.”
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1906. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Wray through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 882
- 859 boys · 23 girls
- Most popular year
- 1927
- 28 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 5 in 1989. Later missing counts do not mean the name went unused. Its largest published annual count for boys was 28 in 1927. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 568 as a first name in 2020; 15,139 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.
Wray’s family of names
In English usage, Wray has a related form in Ray. In English usage, Wray as a surname has a related form in WROE.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
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.
People named Wray
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Wray, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Lute
“stooping”
>99% boys
Roald
“praise, fame” · “ruler, chieftain”
>99% boys
Alver
“wholly, entirely” · “weather”
96% boys · 4% girls
Ove
“giver of life; egg” · “one who worships God”
>99% boys
Haldor
“of the thunderous rock”
>99% boys
Sparks
Sparks is a surname from Old Norse.
>99% boys
Haskel
“an intelligent man”
>99% boys
Thurman
“protected by Thor”
>99% boys