Cayle
Of Norman origin, meaning "humble" or "watchful".
Name Census estimates that about 373 living Americans carry the first name Cayle. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 65.3% of registrations being male. The average person named Cayle today is around 28 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Cayle births was 2007 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Cayle. 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 Cayle with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
373
~ 1 in 918,912 Americans
Peak year
2007
22 babies that year
Average age
28
years old
2016 SSA rank
#12,518
Tracked since 1972
Census
Cayle in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 484 people with the first name Cayle, which placed it at #21,098 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
#21,098
National first-name rank
People counted
484
484 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
78.9% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cayle
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cayle is White at 78.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Black (5.6%). 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 Cayle 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 Cayle at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.9% · 382
- Hispanic or Latino8.5% · 41
- Black or African American5.6% · 27
- Two or more races3.9% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 6
Gender
Gender distribution for Cayle
Cayle is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 383 total registrations, 250 (65.3%) were male and 133 (34.7%) were female.
Cayle as a male name
- Ranked #12,518 in 2016
- 5 male births in 2016
- Peak: 1990 (13 births)
Cayle as a female name
- Ranked #17,094 in 2014
- 5 female births in 2014
- Peak: 1999 (14 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Cayle on both sides of the split. Of the 486 people counted with this name, 268 were male (55.1%) and 218 were female (44.9%).
Popularity
Cayle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Cayle from the 1970s through to the 2010s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 139 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Cayle remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Cayle 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 Cayle during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Cayle
The name Cayle originates from the Gaelic language, which has its roots in the Celtic cultures of Ireland and Scotland. It is believed to have emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 10th to 12th centuries.
Cayle is derived from the Gaelic word "caol," which means "slender" or "thin." This suggests that the name may have been initially used to describe someone with a slim or lean physique.
In ancient Irish texts and manuscripts, there are references to individuals bearing names similar to Cayle, such as "Caolán" or "Caolaidhe." However, the exact spelling of "Cayle" is not as prevalent in these historical records.
The earliest recorded instance of the name Cayle can be traced back to the 14th century, when a nobleman named Cayle MacCormack was mentioned in the annals of the Clan MacCormack in County Antrim, Ireland. This suggests that the name was in use among Irish nobility during that time period.
One of the most notable historical figures with the name Cayle was Cayle O'Neill, a prominent Irish chieftain who lived in the late 15th century. He played a significant role in the Irish resistance against English rule and is remembered for his leadership during the Irish Confederate Wars.
In the 17th century, Cayle MacDonald was a Scottish clan chief and warrior who fought alongside the Jacobite forces during the Jacobite Risings, a series of uprisings aimed at restoring the Stuart monarchy in Great Britain.
Another historical figure was Cayle O'Rourke, an Irish poet and bard who lived in the late 16th century. His works celebrated Irish culture and traditional values, and he is renowned for his eloquent use of the Gaelic language.
In the 19th century, Cayle McGregor was a prominent Scottish artist known for his landscape paintings depicting the rugged beauty of the Scottish Highlands. His works are celebrated for their vivid colors and attention to detail.
While the name Cayle has its roots in the Celtic cultures of Ireland and Scotland, its usage has spread to other parts of the world over time. It has been adopted by individuals of various backgrounds, though its historical significance remains closely tied to its Gaelic origins.
People
Cayle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Cayle 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
Cayle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Cayle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 373 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Cayle 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 918,912 US residents.
Is Cayle a common name?
We classify Cayle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 81.6% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 383 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Cayle most popular?
The single biggest year for Cayle was 2007, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Cayle is about 28 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Cayle in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 484 people with the name Cayle, or 0.16 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #21,098 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 Cayle 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 Cayle?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Cayle on both sides of the split. Of the 486 people counted with this name, 268 were male (55.1%) and 218 were female (44.9%). 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 Cayle?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Cayle is White at 78.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Black (5.6%). 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 Cayle most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Cayle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.9% (382 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 Cayle in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Cayle a male name?
Yes, 65.3% of people registered as Cayle in the SSA data are male. 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 Cayle still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Cayle 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 Cayle 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 Americans are named Cayle?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.