Clay
Clay is both an English surname, and a masculine given name. It may be short for Clayton.
- English
Meaning & Origin of Clay
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Clay is both an English surname, and a masculine given name. It may be short for Clayton.
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Clay
American parents first put Clay on the record books as a baby boy name in 1880, with 18 registered babies. Its peak popularity came in 1960, when 904 Clays were born — ranking #264 that year. As of 2026, Clay ranks #531 for baby boys with 558 births, rising sharply (+33% over the past five years). All told, over 41K Americans have carried the name since 1880, from the 1880s to the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Clay
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Clay. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Notable people named Clay
A small selection from Wikipedia. Tap "Read more" below to see the full list on Wikipedia.
- Clay Aiken (born 1978), American popular music singer
- Clay Buchholz (born 1984), Major League Baseball pitcher for the Boston Red Sox
- Clay Calvert American lawyer and academic
- Clay Martin Croker (1962–2016), American voice actor and animator
- Clay Dalrymple (born 1936), former American professional baseball player
- Clay Dreslough , American video game designer
- Clay Felker (1925–2008), American magazine editor and journalist
- Clay Fuller (born 1981), American politician and attorney
Source: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 3.0). Read more →
Names that sound like Clay
Phonetically similar names — useful when Clay is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Clay
What does the name Clay mean?
What is the origin of the name Clay?
How popular is Clay in 2026?
When was Clay most popular?
In which U.S. states is Clay most popular?
Is Clay a unisex name?
What names go well with Clay?
What are nicknames or variants of Clay?
About the name Clay
Clay is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1880 and has accumulated 41K births in the dataset. Clay's peak popularity came in 1960 when it ranked #259. Use the chart and map above to compare Clay's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1960 →
- Names of the 1960s →
- Names starting with "C" →
- Browse all boy names →
- Top names of 2026 →
Data sources
- Birth statistics (counts, ranks, years 1880–2026) — U.S. Social Security Administration . Predictions for years not yet released by SSA are computed by Peek a Name from historical trends; we update with official data as soon as it ships.
- Etymology, cultural origins, and related forms — Behind the Name (used under their public API terms).
- Meaning prose and editorial summary — Wikipedia article extracts, licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0 .
- Predicted nationality distribution — Nationalize.io .
- Phonetically similar names — Datamuse .
Peek a Name aggregates and presents the above data for informational purposes. Statistical predictions and external attributions are clearly labelled where shown; we make no guarantee of accuracy beyond what each source provides.