Ray

What Ray means

Means “king”

Also as an English surname, from Old French rei (“king”).

Source: Wiktionary, “Ray” (revision 94547826), CC BY-SA 4.0. Quoted from the etymology; we don’t write our own.

How popular is Ray?

US: Falling: down from #712 in 2015. England & Wales: Falling: down from #526 in 2015.

Biggest US share so far: 1896, when 426 boys got the name (#50 that year). First in the US records in 1880.

How common

• About 1 in 5,354 baby boys in the US in 2025
• About 1 in 4,249 baby boys in England and Wales in 2025
• About 1 in 3,928 baby boys in Scotland in 2025

“1 in N” divides by all listed births for that sex. The US list leaves out names given to fewer than 5 babies, and the UK lists leave out names given to 2 or fewer, so the real figure is a little rarer than shown.

Where in the US

Most popular in UT (0.41 per 1,000 boys), IN (0.32 per 1,000 boys), CO (0.3 per 1,000 boys) in 2025.

SSA state data, 2025. Share of all listed boys born in each state.

US vs UK

Ray is #791 in the US and #602 in England & Wales (2025).

Same sex as this page (boys). SSA (US), ONS (England and Wales), NRS (Scotland).

Boy or girl?

In 2025, 94.4% of US babies named Ray were boys.

Counts below the publishing threshold (US 5, UK 3) are not included.

How to say it

IPA from Wiktionary.

Other spellings parents chose in 2025

• Roy570 US · 48 E&W
• Rey262 US · 7 E&W
• Rui49 US · 18 E&W
• Rei35 US · 7 E&W
• Roi34 US · 4 E&W
• Rai29 US · 9 E&W
• Ra14 US
• Roe8 US · 5 E&W

Names that sound the same and differ by a letter or two, with baby counts for the same sex. US and E&W counts.

Spelling variants on Wiktionary

• Rey
• Rai
• Rhay
• Rhey
• Shahr-e-Rey
• Shahr-e-Ray
• Rhaga
• Rhagae

Listed as alternative forms on Wiktionary.

If you like Ray

Boys

• James#6“May He Heel”^*
• Charles#48“free man”^*
• Peter#187“stone, rock”^*
• Paul#262“small”^*
• Derek#284Editor’s note Peaked in the US in 1989, with 8,365 babies; 1,191 in 2025
• Thomas#34“twin”^*

For a sister

• Amy#257“beloved”^*
• Mary#125Same root as Miriam, possibly meaning “bitter”^*
• Sara#198Variant of Sarah, meaning “masters, princes”^*
• Ashley#164“ash tree + wood, clearing”^*
• Elizabeth#17“my God is an oath”^*
• Rachel#250“ewe”^*

Picked from the US top 1,000 in 2025: names Wiktionary also files under where there are enough, topped up with common names whose US popularity since 1990 rose and fell most like Ray’s. Place names are only included if they are in the top 300. Rank is US 2025.