UK name, mostly boys
Shaye
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift from God".
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.
Also recorded as a girls' name in the UK, with 147 girls.
Shaye is mostly registered for boys in the UK records. People looking for Shaye popularity in 2026 should use the latest official release, which is 2024 in this profile. In that release it ranked #3688, with 5 babies registered with the name. Its strongest year in the published records was 2009, with 28 births.
This profile covers 340 England and Wales registrations across 28 recorded years from 1996 to 2024. The figures come from ONS England and Wales and NRS Scotland, 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 18% of the recorded peak, which gives a quick read on how the name has moved since its high point.
We estimate that about 375 living people in the UK are called Shaye. 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
- • Shaye ranked #3688 for boys in England and Wales in 2024, with 5 registrations.
- • The name peaked in 2009, when 28 boys were registered as Shaye.
- • Shaye ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #609 in 2019.
- • Shaye is also recorded for girls, but the boys side is the larger UK variant in these records.
- • About 375 living people in the UK are estimated to have Shaye as a first name, after adjusting past birth registrations with ONS life tables.
- • Across the England and Wales records shown here, 69.8% of Shaye registrations are for boys.
Latest rank (E&W)
#3688
2024
Births in 2024
5
Latest year
Peak year
2009
28 births
Estimated living
375
2026
Gender
Boy and girl registrations for Shaye
In England and Wales birth records, Shaye has been registered for both boys and girls. Across the years shown here, 69.8% of registrations are for boys and 30.2% are for girls.
These figures use the sex categories in the published baby-name files. They are useful for spotting how the name is used at registration, but they are not a live measure of gender identity or everyone living with the name today.
Shaye registered for boys
- Ranked #3,688 in 2024
- 5 boys registered in 2024
- Peak: 2009 (28 births)
Shaye registered for girls
- Ranked #5,669 in 2022
- 3 girls registered in 2022
- Peak: 1997 (16 births)
Meaning
What does Shaye mean?
The name Shaye is believed to have its origins in the Hebrew language, where it is a variant spelling of the name Shay or Shea. The name is derived from the Hebrew word "sha'ah," which means "gift" or "present." This suggests that the name was likely given to children as a symbol of gratitude or a blessing.
In the ancient Hebrew culture, names were often chosen with great care and significance, as they were seen as an expression of a person's identity and character. The name Shaye may have been given to children with the hope that they would be a gift to their families and communities.
While the exact origin of the name Shaye is uncertain, it is likely that it emerged as a variant spelling or pronunciation of the more common Hebrew name Shay or Shea. Over time, as the name spread to different cultures and regions, various spellings and variations may have emerged, including Shaye.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Shaye was Shaye ibn Khallikan, an Arab biographer and scholar who lived in the 13th century (1211-1282). His work, known as the "Wafayat al-A'yan" (Deaths of Eminent Men), was a comprehensive biographical dictionary that documented the lives of notable individuals from the Islamic world.
In the 16th century, Shaye Alnili (1528-1594) was a renowned Persian poet and writer who was celebrated for his mastery of the Persian language and his contributions to literature.
More recently, Shaye J.D. Cohen (born 1948) is an American scholar and professor who specializes in the study of ancient Judaism and the history of the Jewish people.
Another notable figure with the name Shaye is Shaye Green (born 1981), an American video game programmer and software developer who has contributed to various emulators and game preservation projects.
Lastly, Shaye Moss (born 1996) is an American former election worker who gained national attention during the 2020 United States presidential election for her role in processing ballots in Fulton County, Georgia.
Sourced from namecensus.com.
Popularity
Shaye over time
The chart below compares boys and girls registered as Shaye in England and Wales, 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 Shaye, the clearest high point is 2009. The latest England and Wales figure is 5 births in 2024, compared with 28 at the peak.
Babies born per year
Decades
Shaye by decade
Decade totals smooth out the yearly jumps and make it easier to see whether Shaye 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 | #4107 | 17 | 4 |
| 2010s | #1834 | 143 | 10 |
| 2000s | #1324 | 156 | 10 |
| 1990s | #1978 | 24 | 4 |
Geography
Where Shaye is most common
The bars show the latest published local birth counts for Shaye. 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.
Shaye ranks best in Scotland in the latest published regional snapshot for that area, where it placed #609 in 2019.
Across the UK
Shaye in Scotland and Northern Ireland
Scotland (NRS)
#609 in 2019
9 years of NRS records, 38 total registered
Related
Names similar to Shaye
- Samuel 108,505
- Sebastian 33,008
- Sam 20,889
- Stanley 16,354
- Sonny 15,028
- Sean 15,006
- Scott 12,587
- Seth 9,841
- Syed 9,050
- Stephen 8,884
- Spencer 8,333
- Steven 6,970
FAQ
Shaye: questions and answers
How popular is the name Shaye in the UK right now?
In 2024, Shaye was ranked #3688 for boys in England and Wales, with 5 births registered.
When was Shaye most popular?
The peak year on record was 2009, with 28 babies registered as Shaye in England and Wales.
What is the meaning and origin of Shaye?
A feminine name of Hebrew origin meaning "gift from God".
How many people are called Shaye in the UK?
A total of 340 babies have been registered as Shaye across the 28 years of ONS England & Wales records shown here, plus 38 more in Scotland.
Where is Shaye most common?
In the latest published local rankings, Shaye ranks best in Scotland, where it placed #609 in 2019. 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.