Clay
Last seen for girls in 2024 at #15,293 · #573 for boys in 2025, 515 births
Given to boys 99.3% of the time
Showing
- Peak · boys
- 1961 · 900 births
- Debut · boys
- 18 births
- In top 100 · boys
- neverof 146 years
- Total births · boys
- 40,252since 1880
Clay over time
boys
Rank among boys' names. Clay has never cracked the top 200 here.
Hover or use arrow keys to read values by year; click or press Enter to open that year.
Gaps mean fewer than 5 babies received the name that year, so the SSA doesn't publish it.
Show data table
| Year | girls | boys | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| rank | births | rank | births | |
| 2025 | — | #573 | 515 | |
| 2024 | #15,293 | 5 | #544 | 545 |
| 2023 | — | #581 | 494 | |
| 2022 | — | #618 | 453 | |
| 2021 | — | #617 | 451 | |
| 2020 | #15,088 | 5 | #644 | 417 |
| 2019 | — | #682 | 376 | |
| 2018 | — | #688 | 353 | |
| 2017 | — | #694 | 355 | |
| 2016 | — | #723 | 339 | |
| 2015 | — | #720 | 342 | |
| 2014 | — | #840 | 269 | |
| 2013 | — | #729 | 321 | |
| 2012 | — | #726 | 322 | |
| 2011 | — | #720 | 316 | |
| 2010 | — | #793 | 273 | |
| 2009 | — | #948 | 213 | |
| 2008 | — | #853 | 250 | |
| 2007 | — | #775 | 281 | |
| 2006 | — | #707 | 309 | |
| 2005 | — | #654 | 330 | |
| 2004 | #16,099 | 5 | #582 | 383 |
| 2003 | — | #478 | 519 | |
| 2002 | — | #417 | 597 | |
| 2001 | — | #427 | 573 | |
| 2000 | — | #396 | 641 | |
| 1999 | — | #403 | 603 | |
| 1998 | #11,138 | 7 | #393 | 623 |
| 1997 | — | #379 | 643 | |
| 1996 | — | #369 | 648 | |
| 1995 | — | #343 | 714 | |
| 1994 | — | #353 | 689 | |
| 1993 | — | #444 | 494 | |
| 1992 | — | #484 | 433 | |
| 1991 | — | #459 | 465 | |
| 1990 | — | #445 | 494 | |
| 1989 | — | #444 | 451 | |
| 1988 | — | #406 | 488 | |
| 1987 | — | #402 | 467 | |
| 1986 | — | #423 | 412 | |
| 1985 | — | #418 | 416 | |
| 1984 | — | #425 | 380 | |
| 1983 | — | #424 | 373 | |
| 1982 | — | #458 | 345 | |
| 1981 | — | #455 | 333 | |
| 1980 | #9,095 | 6 | #443 | 350 |
| 1979 | — | #431 | 345 | |
| 1978 | #6,385 | 9 | #401 | 369 |
| 1977 | — | #382 | 421 | |
| 1976 | — | #367 | 434 | |
| 1975 | — | #365 | 454 | |
| 1974 | — | #373 | 422 | |
| 1973 | #8,423 | 5 | #354 | 470 |
| 1972 | — | #374 | 439 | |
| 1971 | — | #352 | 520 | |
| 1970 | #7,995 | 5 | #379 | 456 |
| 1969 | — | #378 | 431 | |
| 1968 | — | #394 | 389 | |
| 1967 | — | #403 | 361 | |
| 1966 | #6,564 | 5 | #395 | 360 |
| 1965 | — | #369 | 440 | |
| 1964 | — | #328 | 571 | |
| 1963 | — | #303 | 656 | |
| 1962 | — | #288 | 705 | |
| 1961 | — | #259 | 900 | |
| 1960 | #5,168 | 7 | #265 | 904 |
| 1959 | — | #276 | 826 | |
| 1958 | #4,890 | 7 | #284 | 723 |
| 1957 | #3,696 | 11 | #313 | 594 |
| 1956 | — | #339 | 485 | |
| 1955 | #5,828 | 5 | #350 | 426 |
| 1954 | #4,278 | 8 | #388 | 340 |
| 1953 | — | #431 | 270 | |
| 1952 | #4,483 | 7 | #426 | 267 |
| 1951 | — | #450 | 225 | |
| 1950 | #4,315 | 7 | #497 | 180 |
| 1949 | — | #502 | 176 | |
| 1948 | — | #505 | 171 | |
| 1947 | — | #561 | 145 | |
| 1946 | — | #603 | 114 | |
| 1945 | — | #612 | 97 | |
| 1944 | #4,054 | 6 | #585 | 110 |
| 1943 | #2,861 | 11 | #568 | 125 |
| 1942 | #2,416 | 14 | #553 | 123 |
| 1941 | #3,954 | 6 | #576 | 106 |
| 1940 | — | #510 | 128 | |
| 1939 | #3,145 | 8 | #514 | 122 |
| 1938 | #2,579 | 11 | #546 | 113 |
| 1937 | #3,800 | 6 | #536 | 117 |
| 1936 | #3,376 | 7 | #509 | 124 |
| 1935 | — | #548 | 110 | |
| 1934 | — | #545 | 117 | |
| 1933 | #2,868 | 9 | #532 | 114 |
| 1932 | — | #524 | 123 | |
| 1931 | — | #539 | 117 | |
| 1930 | #3,658 | 7 | #523 | 131 |
| 1929 | — | #578 | 107 | |
| 1928 | — | #518 | 135 | |
| 1927 | #3,284 | 9 | #485 | 155 |
| 1926 | #4,306 | 6 | #528 | 131 |
| 1925 | — | #506 | 144 | |
| 1924 | #4,434 | 6 | #508 | 151 |
| 1923 | #2,732 | 12 | #524 | 134 |
| 1922 | #5,009 | 5 | #442 | 189 |
| 1921 | #4,023 | 7 | #489 | 160 |
| 1920 | #3,097 | 10 | #498 | 147 |
| 1919 | — | #526 | 128 | |
| 1918 | — | #495 | 146 | |
| 1917 | #4,083 | 6 | #514 | 125 |
| 1916 | #4,417 | 5 | #494 | 133 |
| 1915 | #3,434 | 7 | #485 | 132 |
| 1914 | — | #466 | 107 | |
| 1913 | — | #460 | 89 | |
| 1912 | #2,979 | 5 | #456 | 75 |
| 1911 | — | #395 | 52 | |
| 1910 | — | #537 | 28 | |
| 1909 | — | #419 | 35 | |
| 1908 | — | #413 | 33 | |
| 1907 | — | #405 | 31 | |
| 1906 | — | #346 | 36 | |
| 1905 | — | #355 | 34 | |
| 1904 | — | #354 | 32 | |
| 1903 | — | #370 | 27 | |
| 1902 | — | #337 | 33 | |
| 1901 | — | #407 | 21 | |
| 1900 | — | #337 | 41 | |
| 1899 | — | #384 | 23 | |
| 1898 | — | #288 | 40 | |
| 1897 | — | #375 | 25 | |
| 1896 | — | #352 | 30 | |
| 1895 | — | #316 | 33 | |
| 1894 | — | #271 | 42 | |
| 1893 | — | #300 | 33 | |
| 1892 | — | #394 | 23 | |
| 1891 | #1,213 | 6 | #564 | 11 |
| 1890 | — | #302 | 32 | |
| 1889 | — | #322 | 29 | |
| 1888 | — | #324 | 31 | |
| 1887 | — | #340 | 23 | |
| 1886 | — | #321 | 28 | |
| 1885 | — | #422 | 18 | |
| 1884 | — | #306 | 32 | |
| 1883 | — | #331 | 25 | |
| 1882 | — | #437 | 17 | |
| 1881 | — | #332 | 24 | |
| 1880 | — | #403 | 18 | |
First appearance
1880
In the first year the SSA published name data, Clay was already there! It came in at #403, and was given to 18 baby boys.
Quietest stretch: 1891, when fewer than 12 boys a year got the name.
Where Clay is popular in 1997
- Rank in state
- Top 10
- 11–50
- 51–100
- 101–500
- 501+
- Not published
Hover or tap a state for its numbers.
Top states · boys
- Montana#122 · 1 in 447
- South Dakota#140 · 1 in 554
- North Dakota#145 · 1 in 631
- Kansas#162 · 1 in 703
- Nebraska#175 · 1 in 886
Best ever in a state: #93 in Wyoming, 1988.
Show every state
| State | Rank | Births | Share |
|---|---|---|---|
| Montana | #122 | 9 | 1 in 447 |
| South Dakota | #140 | 7 | 1 in 554 |
| North Dakota | #145 | 6 | 1 in 631 |
| Kansas | #162 | 22 | 1 in 703 |
| Nebraska | #175 | 11 | 1 in 886 |
| Kentucky | #196 | 18 | 1 in 1,290 |
| Ohio | #222 | 45 | 1 in 1,556 |
| Oklahoma | #228 | 16 | 1 in 1,257 |
| Tennessee | #238 | 23 | 1 in 1,507 |
| West Virginia | #243 | 5 | 1 in 1,855 |
| Indiana | #245 | 23 | 1 in 1,622 |
| Missouri | #253 | 19 | 1 in 1,811 |
| Arkansas | #261 | 10 | 1 in 1,466 |
| Iowa | #262 | 9 | 1 in 1,806 |
| Nevada | #262 | 8 | 1 in 1,336 |
| North Carolina | #265 | 29 | 1 in 1,621 |
| Idaho | #285 | 5 | 1 in 1,495 |
| New Mexico | #286 | 7 | 1 in 1,523 |
| Louisiana | #298 | 16 | 1 in 1,679 |
| Minnesota | #315 | 11 | 1 in 2,622 |
| Michigan | #331 | 22 | 1 in 2,696 |
| Texas | #337 | 72 | 1 in 2,181 |
| Utah | #339 | 9 | 1 in 2,125 |
| Colorado | #348 | 11 | 1 in 2,273 |
| Wisconsin | #351 | 10 | 1 in 2,874 |
| Alabama | #382 | 9 | 1 in 2,732 |
| Georgia | #382 | 19 | 1 in 2,641 |
| Oregon | #384 | 7 | 1 in 2,764 |
| Illinois | #390 | 28 | 1 in 2,845 |
| Maryland | #405 | 9 | 1 in 3,123 |
| Pennsylvania | #414 | 16 | 1 in 4,125 |
| Florida | #419 | 29 | 1 in 2,961 |
| Washington | #445 | 9 | 1 in 3,746 |
| Virginia | #455 | 10 | 1 in 3,860 |
| Mississippi | #457 | 5 | 1 in 2,993 |
| Arizona | #494 | 8 | 1 in 4,294 |
| Massachusetts | #534 | 5 | 1 in 7,256 |
| California | #569 | 39 | 1 in 6,297 |
| New York | #1,186 | 7 | 1 in 16,414 |
| Alaska | — | — | — |
| Connecticut | — | — | — |
| Delaware | — | — | — |
| District of Columbia | — | — | — |
| Hawaii | — | — | — |
| Maine | — | — | — |
| New Hampshire | — | — | — |
| New Jersey | — | — | — |
| Rhode Island | — | — | — |
| South Carolina | — | — | — |
| Vermont | — | — | — |
| Wyoming | — | — | — |
Ranks are within each state; “1 in N” is out of the boys born there that year. The SSA only publishes a name in a state when 5 or more babies of one sex got it.
See more about Clay
Momentum · boys
Holding steady
- 29 spots since 2024 (#544 → #573)
- 71 spots since 2020 (#644 → #573)
- 147 spots since 2015 (#720 → #573)
- Biggest jump: 170 spots in 1892 (#564 → #394)
- Biggest drop: 262 spots in 1891 (#302 → #564)
Rise & fade · boys
81 yrs to peak
- Debuted 1880
- Peaked 1961 at #259 (900 births)
- Births halved by 1965, 4 yrs later
Top of the charts · boys
Top 1,000 for 146 yrs
- Top 10: never
- Top 100: never
- Top 1,000: 146 yrs · run 1880–2025
Share of babies · boys
1 in 2,359
- Highest: 1 in 2,359 boys born in 1960 were named Clay (0.04%)
- Latest: 1 in 3,317 boys born in 2025 (0.03%)
- Its best rank, #259 in 1961, was only 1 in 2,360 (0.04%) — a smaller share of a much bigger birth year
Era · boys
The 1990s
- 14.4% of all boys named Clay (5,806) were born in this decade
Show by decade
| Decade | Births | Best rank | Avg rank |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1880s | 245 | #306 (1884) | #354 |
| 1890s | 292 | #271 (1894) | #355 |
| 1900s | 323 | #337 (1900) | #374 |
| 1910s | 1,015 | #395 (1911) | #483 |
| 1920s | 1,453 | #442 (1922) | #508 |
| 1930s | 1,188 | #509 (1936) | #532 |
| 1940s | 1,295 | #502 (1949) | #558 |
| 1950s | 4,336 | #276 (1959) | #375 |
| 1960s | 5,717 | #259 (1961) | #338 |
| 1970s | 4,330 | #352 (1971) | #378 |
| 1980s | 4,015 | #402 (1987) | #430 |
| 1990s | 5,806 | #343 (1995) | #407 |
| 2000s | 4,096 | #396 (2000) | #624 |
| 2010s | 3,266 | #682 (2019) | #732 |
| 2020s | 2,875 | #544 (2024) | #596 |
All figures count published births only (names given to at least 5 boys in a year). Registrations before 1937 are incomplete, so early shares and totals run low.
Clay in 1997
boys
#379
643 births · 1 in 2,932 boys
Top boys' names in 1997
More about 1997
boys
1,885,140 boys got a published name in 1997; 1 in 2,932 of them was named Clay, which outranked 96.5% of the 10,814 boys' names that year. The ten most popular names covered 15.3% of boys (44.2% in 1880, 8.0% in 2025).
Ranked beside Clay
Biggest movers since 1996
Risers
Among names in the top 1,000 of either year.