Ege
A name of Turkish origin meaning "territory" or "plain".
Name Census estimates that about 209 living Americans carry the first name Ege. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ege today is around 12 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ege births was 2007 (18 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ege. 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 Ege with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
209
~ 1 in 1,639,973 Americans
Peak year
2007
18 babies that year
Average age
12
years old
2024 SSA rank
#5,276
Tracked since 2001
Census
Ege in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 234 people with the first name Ege, which placed it at #34,758 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
#34,758
National first-name rank
People counted
234
234 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
95.3% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ege
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ege is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%) and Black (1.3%). 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 Ege 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 Ege at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.3% · 223
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 4
- Black or African American1.3% · 3
- Two or more races1.3% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.4% · 1
Popularity
Ege: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ege from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 89 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Ege remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ege 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 Ege during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Eges live
Origin
Meaning and history of Ege
The name Ege has its origins in the Turkish language and culture, tracing its roots back to ancient Anatolia and the Ottoman Empire. It is believed to be derived from the Turkish word "ege," which means "sea" or "ocean." This connection to water bodies suggests that the name may have been used initially by coastal communities or those living near major rivers or lakes.
In the early days of the Ottoman Empire, the name Ege was primarily associated with individuals from the Aegean region, which was a hub of maritime trade and cultural exchange. It is possible that the name gained popularity among seafaring communities or those involved in maritime activities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ege can be found in the travel writings of the renowned Ottoman explorer and writer, Evliya Çelebi, who lived from 1611 to 1682. In his accounts, he mentions encountering individuals with the name Ege during his journeys across the Ottoman Empire.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Ege. One prominent example is Ege Mahmut Ünlügençoğlu, a Turkish painter and calligrapher who lived from 1857 to 1914. He was renowned for his contributions to the Ottoman art scene and his unique fusion of traditional and modern styles.
Another individual of note was Ege Aygören, a Turkish athlete who competed in the Olympic Games in the early 20th century. Born in 1896, he participated in various track and field events, representing the Ottoman Empire and later Turkey.
In the realm of literature, Ege Hicabi Kızılcan was a respected Turkish poet and writer who lived from 1887 to 1958. His works explored themes of love, nature, and social commentary, leaving a lasting impact on Turkish poetry.
Ege Aksel, born in 1899, was a Turkish military officer and diplomat who played a significant role in the Turkish War of Independence. He later served as the ambassador to several countries, representing Turkey on the international stage.
While the name Ege has its roots in Turkish history and culture, it has also gained recognition beyond its place of origin. Individuals with this name can be found in various parts of the world, carrying the legacy of its maritime and cultural associations.
People
Ege + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ege as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with E
Other first names starting with E with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ege: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ege?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 209 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ege 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 1,639,973 US residents.
Is Ege a common name?
We classify Ege as "Very Rare". It ranks above 74.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 211 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ege most popular?
The single biggest year for Ege was 2007, when 18 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ege is about 12 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ege in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 234 people with the name Ege, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #34,758 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 Ege 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 Ege?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Ege leans strongly male. 200 people counted with this name were male (86.2%), compared with 32 female bearers (13.8%). 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 Ege?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ege is White at 95.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%) and Black (1.3%). 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 Ege most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Ege in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (223 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 Ege in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ege a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ege 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 Ege still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ege 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 Ege 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 Ege?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people share the name Ege at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.