Baby name

Kay

Girl

Origin of the name

Kay is a short form of Katherine. Sir Kay is also a knight of the Round Table in the legends of King Arthur.

Short-lived name

The high point came in 1942, with 3,622 births and the No. 75 spot that year. The decline was steep: births are now 99% below the peak. Its rank in 2025: No. 3902. 33% of all babies named Kay since 1880 were born in the 1940s.

98,621births since 1880

1940sgeneration

No. 75rank at its peak, in 1942

Where babies named Kay are born

1942

Year shown on the map

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The darker the blue, the more common Kay is in the state, compared with its births. White: no births published that year.

Where it is most popular

Compared with the national average, Kay is most common in South Dakota (3.2 times), Iowa (2.7) and Wisconsin (2.6), taking into account all births in each state since 1910.

One letter apart

May 49,400
Fay 32,059
Katy 20,952
Gay 17,985
Kaye 13,204
Kaya 10,314

Names from the same era

Carole · Priscilla · Patsy · Joann · Faye · Maryann

Born in…

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