NameCensus.

UK girl's name

Sadie

A feminine given name of Hebrew origin meaning "princess".

For 2026, the newest official UK baby-name figures on this page are from 2024. That release is the current official benchmark rather than a forecast.

Sadie is a girl's name in the UK records. People looking for Sadie popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #132, with 374 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2023, with 387 births.

This profile covers 8,451 England and Wales registrations across 29 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales, NRS Scotland and NISRA Northern Ireland, so the page is a view of published baby-name registrations rather than a forecast or a live count of people using the name today.

The latest count is about 97% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.

We estimate that about 9,650 living people in the UK are called Sadie. This uses published birth registrations from England and Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland, then applies ONS national life tables to estimate how many are likely still alive. It does not forecast extra births for 2025 or 2026.

Key insights

  • Sadie ranked #132 for girls in England and Wales in 2024, with 374 registrations.
  • The name peaked in 2023, when 387 girls were registered as Sadie.
  • Sadie ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #42 in 2024.
  • About 9,650 living people in the UK are estimated to have Sadie as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.

Latest rank (E&W)

#132

2024

Births in 2024

374

Latest year

Peak year

2023

387 births

Estimated living

9,650

2026

Meaning

What does Sadie mean?

The name Sadie has its origins in the Hebrew language and culture. It is a diminutive form of the name Sarah, which means "princess" or "lady." The earliest recorded use of the name Sadie dates back to the late 19th century, although the name Sarah has been used for centuries.

In the Bible, Sarah was the name of the wife of the patriarch Abraham and the mother of Isaac. She is an important figure in the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. The name Sarah is mentioned numerous times in the Old Testament and is highly revered in these faiths.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Sadie can be found in the 1871 novel "The Last Chronicle of Barset" by Anthony Trollope, where a character named Sadie is mentioned. However, the name did not gain widespread popularity until the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals named Sadie. One of the most famous was Sadie Hawkins, a fictional character created by cartoonist Al Capp in the comic strip "Li'l Abner" in 1937. The Sadie Hawkins dance, where women traditionally ask men to be their dates, became a popular cultural phenomenon.

Another notable Sadie was Sadie Plant (1887-1955), an American actress and vaudeville performer who appeared in numerous Broadway productions and films during the early 20th century. She is often credited with popularizing the name Sadie in the United States.

In the field of literature, Sadie Thompson was the protagonist of the 1915 short story "Rain" by W. Somerset Maugham. The story was later adapted into a successful Broadway play and several films, further increasing the name's recognition.

Sadie Marcus (1885-1959) was an American lawyer and activist who played a significant role in the women's suffrage movement. She was one of the first female lawyers in Missouri and fought for women's rights and legal equality.

Sadie Sink (born 2002) is a contemporary American actress known for her roles in the television series "Stranger Things" and the horror film "Fear Street." Her portrayal of Max Mayfield in "Stranger Things" has earned her critical acclaim and a dedicated fan following.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

Popularity

Sadie over time

The chart below shows babies named Sadie registered in England and Wales in the years where the name appears in the published records, from 1996 to 2024. Empty years are left out so rare names are not stretched across long periods where the published files do not show any registrations.

For Sadie, the clearest high point is 2023. The latest England and Wales figure is 374 births in 2024, compared with 387 at the peak.

Babies born per year

Sadie
097194290387199620102024

Decades

Sadie by decade

Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Sadie was a short-lived spike or a name that stayed in regular use. Average rank is calculated only from years where a published rank exists.

Decade Average rank Total births Years covered
2020s #142 1,772 5
2010s #166 3,217 10
2000s #182 2,735 10
1990s #232 727 4

Geography

Where Sadie is most common

The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Sadie. They are useful for spotting where the name is showing up in real numbers, while the rank beside each bar shows how strongly it performs inside that region.

Sadie ranks best in Northern Ireland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #42 in 2024.

Scotland
49
Northern Ireland
42

Across the UK

Sadie in Scotland and Northern Ireland

Scotland (NRS)

#87 in 2024

35 years of NRS records, 798 total registered

Northern Ireland (NISRA)

#42 in 2024

19 years of NISRA records, 451 total registered

Notable bearers

Famous people named Sadie

  • Sadie Mitchell

    association football player

    Scottish professional footballer

    2001-

  • Sadie Russell

    basketball player

    English basketball player (born 1996)

    1996-

  • Sadie Ama

    singer; songwriter

    English R&B singer

    1987-

  • Sadie Pickering

    actor; singer-songwriter; voice actor

    British actress

    1986-

  • Sadie Miller

    actor; writer

    English actress, writer

    1985-

  • Sadie Jemmett

    singer; singer-songwriter; guitarist

    British singer-songwriter

    1970-

  • Sadie Jones

    writer; novelist

    British writer

    1967-

  • Sadie Harrison

    composer; archaeologist

    British composer

    1965-

Related

Names similar to Sadie

FAQ

Sadie: questions and answers

How popular is the name Sadie in the UK right now?

In 2024, Sadie was ranked #132 for girls in England and Wales, with 374 births registered.

When was Sadie most popular?

The peak year on record was 2023, with 387 babies registered as Sadie in England and Wales.

What is the meaning and origin of Sadie?

A feminine given name of Hebrew origin meaning "princess".

How many people are called Sadie in the UK?

A total of 8,451 babies have been registered as Sadie across the 29 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 798 more in Scotland and 451 in Northern Ireland.

Where is Sadie most common?

In the latest published local rankings, Sadie ranks best in Northern Ireland, where it placed #42 in 2024. The regional bars on this page use birth counts, so they also reflect the size of each region.

Which records is this page based on?

The England and Wales timeline uses ONS baby-name records. Scotland figures come from NRS and Northern Ireland figures come from NISRA. Counts are registrations in published baby-name files. The living estimate uses those birth registrations with ONS national life tables.