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Kay as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Kay

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The baby name Kay is a Female name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced KAY (IPA: /keɪ/).

Gender: Female
Syllables: 1.0
Pronunciation: KAY (IPA: /keɪ/)

What is the meaning of the name Kay ?

The baby name Kay is a Female name , 1 syllables long and is pronounced KAY (IPA: /keɪ/).

Kay is in Origin.

Kay is an English unisex name with multiple roots. As a short form of Katherine/Catherine (Greek Aikaterine), it conveys the popular meaning “pure” and also serves as a familiar of Kathleen, Karen, and other K‑names. Separately, it echoes the Arthurian knight Sir Kay, whose name comes via Old French Keu from Welsh Cei, perhaps related to Latin Gaius/Caius.

In the U.K. and U.S., Kay peaked as a standalone feminine name in the mid‑20th century, while remaining usable for men through Arthurian influence. In Scandinavia and Germany, Kay is chiefly masculine and overlaps with Kai/Kaj. Variants and spellings include Kaye and Kae; related forms are Kai and Kaj, and the surname Kay/Kaye shares the same stock. Meaning varies by route: “pure” through the Katherine line, otherwise uncertain/Arthurian, with Nordic/German usage often treated as equivalent to Kai.

Kay has the following similar or variant Names

Famous people with the name Kay

Kay Panabaker Actor · Born 1990 · United States Kay Panabaker is best known for her Disney Channel and teen TV roles, especially Phil of the Future, Read It and Weep, and Summerland. Born on May 2, 1990, she is an American zookeeper and former actress. Kay Kendall Actor · Born 1927 · United Kingdom Kay Kendall was an English actress and singer best known for her witty screen presence in 1950s films. She appeared in movies including London Town, Genevieve, and Les Girls. Kay Francis Actor · Born 1905 · United States Kay Francis was best known as a glamorous leading lady of 1930s Hollywood and the top female star at Warner Bros. She started on Broadway before moving into films, where she became famous for movies like Trouble in Paradise, One Way Passage, and Jewel Robbery.
Kay Kay Menon Actor · Born 1966 · India Kay Kay Menon is an Indian actor best known for his powerful performances in Hindi films like Black Friday, Sarkar, and Haider. Born Krishna Kumar Menon on 2 October 1966, he has also appeared in Gujarati, Tamil, Marathi, and Telugu cinema. Kay Lenz Actor · Born 1953 · United States Kay Lenz is an American actress best known for her roles in films like Breezy and House. She has won both a Daytime Emmy Award and a Primetime Emmy Award, and has also been nominated for a Golden Globe and a Saturn Award. Kay Parker Actor · Born 1944 · United States Kay Parker was best known as a British adult film actress and later became a metaphysical counselor and mentor. She also wrote the autobiography Taboo: Sacred, Don't Touch, which reflects on her life and career.

Kay – Popularity by country

Based on birth registration data from national statistics agencies.

Country Gender Year Rank Born of
Ireland Girls 2015 #1 — 945
FJ 0 #6 1 374
BW Girls 0 #9 341 4,216
BW 0 #14 6 960
KR Girls 0 #15 1 572
FJ Boys 0 #17 1 603
KR Boys 0 #26 2 897
BN 0 #28 5 2,297
NA 0 #32 2 2,537
MV Girls 0 #35 1 2,021
MO 0 #41 12 2,706
MT 0 #41 3 1,767
CM 0 #56 1 2,592
CY 0 #60 1 1,632
BW Boys 0 #65 91 4,685
LU 0 #66 1 2,830
JM 0 #69 19 3,714
JM Girls 0 #72 279 7,507
JP 0 #73 5 4,057
AF 0 #76 1 1,883
PH 0 #77 20 5,607
CN 0 #79 8 3,857
TW 0 #80 21 4,523
BG 0 #82 1 1,799
QA 0 #90 11 7,011
BN Girls 0 #96 11 5,459
ID Girls 0 #101 2 3,319
GE Girls 0 #108 1 1,564
CY Girls 0 #110 12 3,755
OM 0 #117 5 6,215
EC 0 #121 1 2,502
KW 0 #121 1 5,216
BN Boys 0 #123 11 6,332
EE Boys 0 #125 1 2,087
CY Boys 0 #131 1 3,473
IQ 0 #133 1 3,533
ID Boys 0 #134 2 4,130
GR 0 #135 1 3,911
Switzerland Boys 2024 #136 2 1,769
Norway Boys 1996 #138 5 505
PA 0 #138 1 3,797
JO 0 #140 1 2,158
CR 0 #144 15 5,526
MT Girls 0 #146 8 3,773
LT Boys 0 #151 1 2,166
Germany Boys 0 #167 2,956 5,697
PR Girls 0 #167 1 3,171
HU Boys 0 #172 3 3,954
GH Boys 0 #173 229 8,138
MO Girls 0 #173 80 7,056
PR Boys 0 #178 1 2,508
MT Boys 0 #179 1 4,064
AE 0 #180 8 10,220
LU Girls 0 #188 3 4,850
TW Girls 0 #194 85 8,139
NA Girls 0 #198 27 7,146
LU Boys 0 #199 20 4,970
GH 0 #201 43 5,396
DK 0 #202 5 5,198
MO Boys 0 #208 16 5,842
PL 0 #212 1 2,600
HK 0 #215 144 8,483
MY 0 #216 120 12,352
AO Girls 0 #217 1 4,575
TW Boys 0 #218 24 7,111
JP Girls 0 #220 26 6,592
NA Boys 0 #220 16 6,830
SG 0 #221 49 11,010
CN Girls 0 #222 138 8,829
AL Girls 0 #227 1 4,141
NG 0 #227 38 5,926
BG Girls 0 #231 1 3,559
IR 0 #231 1 4,221
BD 0 #239 3 5,992
GR Girls 0 #243 7 6,293
HK Girls 0 #245 555 16,104
AO Boys 0 #246 4 5,568
PT 0 #249 2 4,161
HK Boys 0 #258 391 12,905
HR Boys 0 #259 1 3,997
CN Boys 0 #260 61 9,639
JM Boys 0 #260 13 6,876
Germany 0 #268 178 2,542
GR Boys 0 #273 1 6,912
AF Boys 0 #274 1 3,535
QA Girls 0 #274 43 15,378
Canada Girls 2024 #279 7 2,795
IL 0 #281 2 6,291
JP Boys 0 #285 13 7,909
SA 0 #285 11 10,560
PH Girls 0 #286 106 13,098
ZA 0 #287 161 14,421
KZ Boys 0 #292 5 6,578
HR Girls 0 #294 1 3,687
AL Boys 0 #302 2 5,122
CZ Boys 0 #302 4 6,530
GH Girls 0 #303 22 6,973
Canada Boys 2022 #306 5 2,557
DK Girls 0 #307 10 7,429
DK Boys 0 #312 14 7,401
SG Girls 0 #325 281 18,916
NL 0 #326 66 2,481
PE 0 #329 1 6,350
JO Girls 0 #333 7 7,570
GT 0 #335 4 5,948
PL Boys 0 #336 5 6,459
MU Girls 0 #340 12 8,539
NL Boys 0 #340 1,040 5,873
MU Boys 0 #347 11 8,477
CZ Girls 0 #348 4 5,378
PT Boys 0 #357 11 7,951
PL Girls 0 #358 7 5,096
SD Girls 0 #358 1 7,678
BR 0 #359 2 5,969
France Girls 1990 #364 4 1,952
OM Girls 0 #369 28 15,987
PH Boys 0 #374 10 11,440
France Boys 2020 #389 3 2,846
JO Boys 0 #389 1 7,057
YE 0 #397 2 8,639
MX 0 #402 12 8,339
BD Girls 0 #403 4 8,413
ZA Girls 0 #407 1,365 25,928
BO 0 #408 1 6,868
Austria Boys 0 #410 33 2,180
Austria Girls 0 #410 11 1,885
EG 0 #411 2 6,387
UY Boys 0 #412 2 5,922
MY Girls 0 #416 772 24,821
CL 0 #427 8 6,867
SD Boys 0 #433 13 10,523
CR Girls 0 #435 98 11,342
Spain 0 #439 14 2,326
PA Girls 0 #455 27 9,861
CR Boys 0 #459 29 10,188
PT Girls 0 #464 8 7,952
ZA Boys 0 #469 1,161 25,619
PA Boys 0 #471 11 9,305
AR Boys 0 #480 4 7,628
AE Girls 0 #483 71 20,968
KW Girls 0 #483 33 19,177
RU Girls 0 #484 15 11,913
RU Boys 0 #486 20 12,621
GT Boys 0 #493 7 7,625
CO 0 #506 5 7,768
PS Girls 0 #512 12 10,981
IQ Girls 0 #520 6 11,303
CM Girls 0 #525 16 11,671
NG Boys 0 #525 574 16,906
LY 0 #526 10 12,703
BH 0 #531 23 17,937
CM Boys 0 #533 18 12,054
UY Girls 0 #533 4 6,731
PS Boys 0 #536 13 10,655
GT Girls 0 #541 1 7,500
IR Boys 0 #543 10 10,162
IR Girls 0 #543 3 8,334
BD Boys 0 #564 13 10,045
SG Boys 0 #566 132 17,960
MY Boys 0 #575 624 25,439
BO Boys 0 #581 12 9,244
IL Boys 0 #591 17 10,983
IL Girls 0 #603 15 11,648
AR Girls 0 #623 8 8,289
LB 0 #626 33 13,263
NG Girls 0 #638 150 15,093
CL Boys 0 #639 27 13,390
IQ Boys 0 #642 26 13,071
BO Girls 0 #644 8 9,488
IN Girls 0 #649 6 13,121
Finland Boys 2026 #654 29 3,552
QA Boys 0 #677 31 18,093
IT 0 #690 25 4,183
Finland Girls 2026 #722 17 3,895
BR Boys 0 #741 11 12,213
Germany Girls 0 #746 93 4,949
KW Boys 0 #753 17 18,755
SY 0 #761 7 11,684
TN 0 #806 24 13,765
CL Girls 0 #807 45 14,098
EG Boys 0 #853 34 15,035
NL Girls 0 #855 101 5,933
OM Boys 0 #856 26 17,948
SA Girls 0 #858 78 25,931
PE Boys 0 #860 19 14,506
BR Girls 0 #871 71 12,708
Spain Boys 0 #878 53 5,610
United States Girls 2024 #879 38 8,487
United States Boys 2024 #879 14 7,044
Spain Girls 0 #895 89 5,561
CO Boys 0 #904 17 15,656
PE Girls 0 #912 32 14,861
MX Boys 0 #926 57 16,355
EG Girls 0 #938 22 14,742
IN Boys 0 #978 24 16,750
AE Boys 0 #1,035 58 22,615
CO Girls 0 #1,048 31 16,140
MX Girls 0 #1,062 122 17,781
MA 0 #1,085 44 20,986
DZ 0 #1,094 83 20,130
TR 0 #1,173 39 19,440
IT Girls 0 #1,308 139 9,415
IT Boys 0 #1,411 61 10,046
SA Boys 0 #1,548 67 28,008

Kay is popular in 87 countries — most recent births per country:

Norway
Scotland, United Kingdom
Switzerland
United States
Canada

Did we miss something about this name? Let us know!

People also ask about Kay

Kay is predominantly a girl's name.
Kay is a one syllable name, pronounced KAY (IPA: /keɪ/).
Common nicknames and spelling variations include Kaye and Kae.
Yes, very popular — Kay ranked #1 in Ireland in 2015, and appears in official birth registries across 9 countries.
Kay ranks highest in Ireland (#1 in 2015).
Kay's popularity is declining. It moved from #873 in 2014 to #879 in 2024 in United States.
Yes — 9 notable people named Kay are in our database, including Kay Panabaker (Actor), Kay Kendall (Actor), Kay Francis (Actor).