Sly
Sly is a name with a single cultural origin: English.
- English
Meaning & Origin of Sly
What this name means, where it came from, and how it has traveled across cultures.
Sly is a name with a single cultural origin: English.
Origin data from Behind the Name .
Cultural Origins (via Behind the Name)
- English
The Story of Sly
The earliest SSA record of Sly as a baby boy name dates back to 1973, when 6 babies received it. 1994 was its biggest year on record, with 9 newborns named Sly — #5,867 in the national rankings. The 1990s were its strongest decade, accounting for roughly 27% of all recorded Slys. Its most recent appearance in the national data came in 2022 (6 births); the name has since faded from the published rankings. In total, more than 91 Slys have been born in the U.S. since records began in 1880, spanning the 1970s through the 2020s.
Popularity Over Time
Popularity by State
Variants & Related Forms of Sly
Foreign forms, alternate spellings, and nicknames that share roots with Sly. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
Names that sound like Sly
Phonetically similar names — useful when Sly is the vibe but a different syllable count or letter feel might suit better. Linked entries have a profile on Peek a Name.
- Sligh
- Sli
- Slye
- Slow
- Sleigh
- Slay
- Slee
- Slew
- Slaw
- Slo
- Sloe
- Slu
Source: Datamuse . Phonetic similarity ranking, not curated.
Frequently Asked Questions about Sly
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About the name Sly
Sly is a boy baby name tracked by the U.S. Social Security Administration. It first appeared in SSA records in 1973 and has accumulated 91 births in the dataset. Sly's peak popularity came in 1994 when it ranked #5,867. Use the chart and map above to compare Sly's trajectory across years and U.S. states, or browse the related names section to discover similar choices.
Continue exploring
- Top names of 1994 →
- Names of the 1990s →
- Names starting with "S" →
- 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.