Girl's name
Faye
Say it FAY
English origin 1 syllable
Where Faye is loved, common and rare
Common in Ireland. Rare in the UK, the Netherlands, Canada and six more places.
1 in 346 girls born in Ireland in 2025
Ireland 80thNorthern Ireland 121stThe Netherlands 138th
LovedCommonRare
Every place
In 13 of the 40 official lists, among them Ireland (80th), Northern Ireland (121st) and the Netherlands (138th).
Show all 13 placesShow less
| Place | Rank | Girls | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ireland | 80th 2025 | 61 | 1 in 346 |
| Northern Ireland | 121st 2025 | 17 | 1 in 429 |
| The Netherlands | 138th 2025 | 109 | about 1 in 560 |
| Scotland | 242nd 2025 | 15 | 1 in 1,193 |
| England and Wales | 333rd 2025 | 130 | 1 in 1,948 |
| British Columbia province | 348th 2023 | 9 | about 1 in 1,329 |
| Ontario province | 400th 2024 | 32 | about 1 in 1,702 |
| Sweden | 558th 2025 | 10 | about 1 in 4,017 |
| Switzerland | 901st 2025 | 6 | 1 in 5,666 |
| Berlin city | 937th 2023 | 2 | about 1 in 7,252 |
| Austria | 1305th 2025 | 2 | 1 in 17,861 |
| France | 3366th 2025 | 5 | 1 in 57,359 |
| Italy | 4773rd 2024 | 1 | 1 in 179,169 |
Rare, below the listed names: Quebec, New South Wales, Victoria, Queensland, South Australia, New Zealand, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock, Norway, Spain, Catalonia, Poland, Hungary, Slovenia and Israel.
Not in a short top list, so no figure: Nova Scotia (top 21), Denmark (top 50), Finland (top 50), Iceland (top 10), Estonia (top 25), Moscow (top 61), Turkey (top 30), Argentina (top 20) and Croatia (top 50).
Germany publishes no national statistics on first names. German figures here are city lists (Berlin, Munich, Cologne, Bonn, Leipzig, Rostock), never the country.
Sources: Central Statistics Office (CSO) (Ireland); NISRA (Northern Ireland); Sociale Verzekeringsbank (SVB) (the Netherlands); National Records of Scotland (Scotland); Office for National Statistics (England and Wales); BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (British Columbia); Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (Ontario); Skatteverket (Swedish Tax Agency) (Sweden); Bundesamt für Statistik (BFS) / Office fédéral de la statistique (OFS) (Switzerland); BerlinOnline GmbH; Landesamt für Bürger- und Ordnungsangelegenheiten (LABO) / Standesämter (Berlin); Statistik Austria (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1) (Austria); INSEE, Fichier des prénoms (édition 2025) (France); ISTAT, Contanomi (Italy). How we count, and every source
About the name
Faye is a variant of Fay, which began as a pet form of Faith or Frances. No separate meaning is attested for Faye itself, so it draws its character from those longer names and from its own short, gentle sound.
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A single syllable, said FAY, it is simple and soft. Fay is the plainer spelling of the same name.
Faye is most popular in Ireland, where it is a top-100 name, and it is also used in Northern Ireland and Scotland. In continental Europe it is best known in the Netherlands, with smaller use in Sweden and Switzerland. In Canada it belongs above all to the late 1940s, so it is a mid-century name that has found new favour elsewhere, and it is now rising in slightly more places than it is falling.
Meaning, origin, pronunciation
- Pronounced
- FAY, 1 syllable
- Origin
- English
- Other spellings
- Fay
Etymology
Variant of Fay, a pet form of Faith or Frances.
From the Wiktionary entry, CC BY-SA 4.0, shortened.
Over time
Over five years: rising in 3 of 8 regions, falling in 2.
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Rank in each place since 1996; higher on the chart is more popular.
Ten years of ranks
Her rank each year, English-speaking regions first. A blank means no published rank for her that year.
| Region | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 | 2020 | 2021 | 2022 | 2023 | 2024 | 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| England and Wales | 239 | 284 | 266 | 319 | 302 | 289 | 378 | 281 | 304 | 333 |
| Scotland | 196 | 201 | 255 | 267 | 241 | 216 | 238 | 185 | 196 | 242 |
| Northern Ireland | 71 | 54 | 58 | 66 | 76 | 75 | 103 | 70 | 67 | 121 |
| Ireland | 47 | 50 | 46 | 47 | 65 | 53 | 55 | 69 | 68 | 80 |
| Ontario | 491 | 467 | 543 | 513 | 499 | 336 | 376 | 477 | 400 | |
| British Columbia | 376 | 518 | 596 | 586 | 358 | 299 | 355 | 348 | ||
| France | 3591 | 3634 | 3650 | 3521 | 3443 | 3366 | ||||
| The Netherlands | 131 | 126 | 172 | 159 | 144 | 167 | 142 | 186 | 138 | |
| Switzerland | 646 | 696 | 1148 | 913 | 765 | 686 | 602 | 874 | 657 | 901 |
| Berlin | 458 | 985 | 1007 | 668 | 978 | 999 | 969 | 937 | ||
| Rostock | 202 | 187 | ||||||||
| Sweden | 789 | 835 | 796 | 493 | 558 |
England and Wales, 1996 to 2025
| Year | Rank | Girls | per 100,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 333 | 130 | 51.3 |
| 2024 | 304 | 142 | 55.0 |
| 2023 | 281 | 160 | 62.4 |
| 2022 | 378 | 113 | 42.9 |
| 2021 | 289 | 164 | 59.8 |
| 2020 | 302 | 154 | 57.4 |
| 2019 | 319 | 148 | 52.8 |
| 2018 | 266 | 182 | 63.1 |
| 2017 | 284 | 172 | 57.5 |
| 2016 | 239 | 215 | 70.0 |
| 2015 | 255 | 195 | 63.3 |
| 2014 | 203 | 262 | 85.4 |
| 2013 | 182 | 287 | 93.0 |
| 2012 | 144 | 393 | 122.0 |
| 2011 | 142 | 393 | 122.3 |
| 2010 | 133 | 431 | 134.3 |
| 2009 | 144 | 383 | 122.2 |
| 2008 | 140 | 383 | 121.3 |
| 2007 | 136 | 409 | 133.6 |
| 2006 | 137 | 405 | 135.3 |
| 2005 | 135 | 397 | 137.7 |
| 2004 | 134 | 379 | 132.6 |
| 2003 | 125 | 405 | 145.3 |
| 2002 | 105 | 442 | 165.3 |
| 2001 | 115 | 406 | 151.5 |
| 2000 | 118 | 416 | 152.3 |
| 1999 | 124 | 387 | 137.4 |
| 1998 | 119 | 383 | 132.4 |
| 1997 | 125 | 388 | 132.3 |
| 1996 | 112 | 405 | 136.8 |
Sources: Office for National Statistics (1996-2025), OGL v3.
Ontario and British Columbia since 1925
Half of the babies named Faye in Ontario and British Columbia since 1925 were born in or after 1960. First recorded in 1927. Her peak year there: 1948, at 111.7 per 100,000 girls.
Babies named Faye per 100,000 girls born in Ontario and British Columbia, by five-year period. Her 1948 peak is averaged into its five-year period, so the line sits below it.
Sources: Ontario Office of the Registrar General (Ontario Data Catalogue) (1917-2024), OGL-Ontario; BC Vital Statistics Agency (BC Data Catalogue) (1924-2023), OGL-BC.
Sister names for Faye
1 in 270 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 160 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 383 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 291 in Northern Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 1,789 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 716 in Scotland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 754 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 1,056 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 274 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
1 in 515 in Ireland
Rose and fell with Faye.
Middle names for Faye
1 in 107 in Northern Ireland
Faye Charlotte
1-2 beats · initials FC
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 2 syllables.
1 in 86 in Ireland
Faye Sophie
1-2 beats · initials FS
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 2 syllables.
1 in 71 in Scotland
Faye Olivia
1-4 beats · initials FO · Faye slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 4 syllables. Faye slides into Olivia: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 311 in Ireland
Faye Maria
1-3 beats · initials FM
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 3 syllables.
1 in 102 in Ireland
Faye Mia
1-2 beats · initials FM
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 2 syllables.
1 in 132 in Northern Ireland
Faye Ruby
1-2 beats · initials FR
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 2 syllables.
1 in 78 in Northern Ireland
Faye Emily
1-3 beats · initials FE · Faye slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 3 syllables. Faye slides into Emily: vowel meets vowel.
1 in 491 in Ireland
Faye Julia
1-3 beats · initials FJ
Changes the beat after Faye: 1 syllable, then 3 syllables.
Same style as Faye
Names whose popularity rose and fell with hers across regions and decades.
1 in 121 in Ireland
93% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 187 in Northern Ireland
93% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 155 in Northern Ireland
93% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 383 in Northern Ireland
92% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 383 in Northern Ireland
91% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 274 in Ireland
90% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 291 in Northern Ireland
90% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
1 in 166 in England and Wales
90% alike: moves with Faye across countries and decades.
Famous people named Faye
Faye Dunaway, Faye Wong, Faye White, Faye Marsay, Faye Grant, Faye Kellerman, Faye Emerson and Faye Webster.
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American actress born 1941
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Hong Kong singer-songwriter and actress born 1969
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English association football player (born 1978)
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British actress born 1986
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American actress born 1957
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American writer of mystery novels born 1952
-
American actress (1917–1983)
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American folk singer and photographer born 1997
People: Wikidata (CC0), linked to Wikipedia in this page's language when an article exists.
Questions about Faye
4 questions, on how popular she is, how to say it, whether she is rising and sister names.
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How popular is Faye?
Her best rank is No. 80 in Ireland in 2025, about 1 in 346 girls. She is in the published lists of 13 of our 40 regions.
How do you pronounce Faye?
FAY, with 1 syllable.
Is Faye getting more popular?
Over five years: rising in 3 of 8 regions, falling in 2.
Which sister names go with Faye?
The deck's top five sisters for Faye: Connie, Bonnie, Penny, Martha and Lillian. Each is scored on style, era, popularity and origin, with sound clashes flagged.