Cassey
A feminine name of English origin meaning "brave" or "courageous".
Name Census estimates that about 1,761 living Americans carry the first name Cassey. It is a predominantly female name (91.6% of registrations). The average person named Cassey today is around 36 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cassey births was 1986 (98 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cassey. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Cassey with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 194,636 Americans
Peak year
1986
98 babies that year
Average age
36
years old
1997 SSA rank
#9,481
Tracked since 1968
Census
Cassey in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 1,716 people with the first name Cassey, which placed it at #8,452 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#8,452
National first-name rank
People counted
1.7K
1,716 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
70.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cassey
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cassey is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.6%) and Black (9.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Cassey described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Cassey at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.2% · 1,205
- Hispanic or Latino9.6% · 165
- Black or African American9.4% · 162
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.3% · 91
- Two or more races4.3% · 74
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 19
Gender
Gender distribution for Cassey
Cassey leans heavily female at 91.6% of total registrations, but 155 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Cassey as a male name
- Ranked #9,481 in 1997
- 5 male births in 1997
- Peak: 1987 (13 births)
Cassey as a female name
- Ranked #12,458 in 2021
- 7 female births in 2021
- Peak: 1986 (98 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cassey leans strongly female. 1,524 people counted with this name were female (89.0%), compared with 189 male bearers (11.0%).
Popularity
Cassey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cassey from the 1960s through to the 2020s, spanning 7 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1980s, with 799 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1980s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cassey by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Cassey during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Casseys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 14 states and territories. Texas, California, Florida recorded the most babies named Cassey, while Arkansas, Alabama, Louisiana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 27 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cassey
The name Cassey has its origins in the Latin language, where it is derived from the word "castus," meaning "pure" or "chaste." The name is believed to have originated during the Roman era, when Latin was widely spoken throughout the Mediterranean region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cassey can be found in ancient Roman texts, where it was used as a masculine name. However, over time, the name became more commonly associated with females, particularly in English-speaking countries.
In the early Christian era, the name Cassey gained popularity among followers of the faith, as it was seen as a virtuous and pure name, reflective of the Christian values of chastity and purity.
One notable historical figure bearing the name Cassey was Saint Cassia, a Christian martyr from the 3rd century AD. Saint Cassia was a young woman who refused to renounce her faith and was executed for her beliefs. Her story of unwavering devotion and sacrifice contributed to the popularity of the name among early Christians.
Another significant figure associated with the name Cassey was Cassia Longina, a Roman noblewoman who lived during the 1st century AD. She was known for her intelligence and literary skills, and several of her works have survived to this day.
In the Middle Ages, the name Cassey became more widespread across Europe, particularly in England and France. One notable bearer of the name during this time was Cassey of Arles, a 6th-century French saint known for her charitable works and devotion to the poor.
During the Renaissance period, the name Cassey continued to be popular, especially among the upper classes. One famous example was Cassey Dugdale, an English noblewoman and poet who lived in the 16th century.
Throughout history, the name Cassey has been associated with various occupations and fields, including the arts, literature, and religion. Some other notable individuals bearing the name include Cassey Fey, an American screenwriter and actress from the early 20th century, and Cassey Murphy, an Irish painter and sculptor active in the late 19th century.
People
Cassey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cassey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with C
Other first names starting with C with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Cassey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cassey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,761 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cassey going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 194,636 US residents.
Is Cassey a common name?
We classify Cassey as "Rare". It ranks above 93.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,846 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cassey most popular?
The single biggest year for Cassey was 1986, when 98 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cassey is about 36 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cassey in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 1,716 people with the name Cassey, or 0.57 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #8,452 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Cassey in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Cassey?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Cassey leans strongly female. 1,524 people counted with this name were female (89.0%), compared with 189 male bearers (11.0%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Cassey?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cassey is White at 70.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.6%) and Black (9.4%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Cassey most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Cassey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.2% (1,205 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Cassey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cassey a female name?
Yes, 91.6% of people registered as Cassey in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Cassey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cassey in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Cassey can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people have the name Cassey?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.