How Many People Are Named Raye?
An estimated 1,440 people in the United States have the first name Raye. It is used for both genders, with 88.2% female. The average bearer is 57 years old, and Raye peaked in popularity in 1956 with 74 births that year.
Below you will find a full statistical profile of Raye as a first name in the United States, including gender data, a year-by-year popularity timeline going back to 1880, a decade breakdown, and state-by-state birth registrations. You can also check how many people share the full name Raye paired with any surname.
Estimated Living Americans
1,440
About 1 in 238,024 people in the U.S.
Rarity
Rare
Predicted Gender
Female
88.2% confidence
Average Age
57
years old
Peak Year
1956
74 births
Total Registered
2,585
since 1880
Gender Distribution for Raye
Raye is predominantly female (88.2%), though 306 male births have been registered. It functions as a unisex name for a small percentage of bearers.
Raye as a male name
Ranked #6,225 in 1982
6 male births in 1982
Peak: 1948 (15 births)
Raye as a female name
Ranked #7,851 in 2024
14 female births in 2024
Peak: 1956 (67 births)
Raye: Popularity Over Time
SSA records for Raye span from the 1880s to the 2020s, covering 15 decades of naming data. The most popular decade for this name was the 1950s, when 524 babies were registered. Raye has declined significantly from its peak in the 1950s. Recent registrations are a fraction of what they were at the name's height.
Raye by Decade
How has Raye tracked across different eras? The table below groups all SSA birth registrations into 10-year periods, with separate male and female counts. The colored bar shows each decade's share relative to the peak.
Raye by State
Birth registrations for Raye span all 11 states and territories in the SSA database. The highest counts are in Texas, California, Ohio. The lowest are in Virginia, Pennsylvania, Louisiana. On average, about 20 Rayes were registered per state.
Raye + Last Name Combinations
How many people share a full name with Raye as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Names Similar to Raye
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
Raye: Questions and Answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Raye?
We estimate approximately 1,440 people named Raye are alive in the United States today. This is based on SSA birth records from 1880 to 2024, adjusted for mortality using CDC life tables. About 1 in 238,024 Americans share this first name.
Is Raye a common name?
Raye is classified as "Rare" and is more popular than 92.2% of all first names in the SSA database. A total of 2,585 births have been registered with this name since 1880.
When was Raye most popular?
Raye reached peak popularity in 1956, when 74 babies were given this name. The average age of a living person named Raye is approximately 57 years old, reflecting when the name was most commonly given.
Is Raye a female name?
Raye is predominantly female. 88.2% of people with this name are female. See the gender breakdown above for full details.
How many Raye Smiths are there?
To find how many people share a specific full name, we combine first name and surname frequencies. Try: Raye Smith, Raye Johnson, Raye Williams. You can also search any combination on our homepage.
Where does this data come from?
Our estimates use Social Security Administration birth records (1880 to 2024), adjusted for survival using CDC 2023 life tables broken down by sex. The U.S. population figure (342,754,338) is from the Census Bureau's July 2025 estimate. Full methodology.
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