Flay
To strike off or remove the skin or surface.
Name Census estimates that about 10 living Americans carry the first name Flay. It is a predominantly male name (94.1% of registrations). The average person named Flay today is around 84 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Flay births was 1916 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Flay. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Flay is about 84 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Flays were born before 1952.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Flay. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
10
~ 1 in 34,275,434 Americans
Peak year
1916
10 babies that year
Average age
84
years old
1956 SSA rank
#4,130
Tracked since 1915
Gender
Gender distribution for Flay
Flay leans heavily male at 94.1% of total registrations, but 5 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Flay as a male name
- Ranked #4,130 in 1956
- 5 male births in 1956
- Peak: 1918 (8 births)
Flay as a female name
- Ranked #4,681 in 1916
- 5 female births in 1916
- Peak: 1916 (5 births)
Popularity
Flay: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Flay from the 1910s through to the 1950s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 35 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Flay 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 Flay during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Flays live
Origin
Meaning and history of Flay
The name Flay originates from the Old English word "flægan," which means "to flay" or "to strip off skin." It is believed to have been derived from the Proto-Germanic root "*flah-" or "*flag-," meaning "to strike" or "to beat." The name was likely given to individuals who worked as skinners or tanners, as their profession involved flaying the hides of animals.
One of the earliest recorded uses of the name Flay can be found in the Domesday Book, a medieval census commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The book mentions a person named Flay who held land in Gloucestershire, England. This suggests that the name was already in use during the 11th century.
In the 13th century, a Franciscan friar named Flay lived in England. He is mentioned in historical records for his work in establishing a friary in Chichester, West Sussex. Unfortunately, not much is known about his life beyond this.
A notable figure named Flay was Sir Flay de Ravenstone, a 14th-century English knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War. He was born around 1320 and is mentioned in chronicles of the time for his bravery in battles against the French.
In the 16th century, a Dutch painter named Flay van der Meer lived and worked in Amsterdam. He was known for his portraits and landscape paintings, although not many of his works have survived to the present day.
During the 17th century, a Scottish mathematician named Flay Maclaurin made significant contributions to the field of calculus. He was born in 1698 and is remembered for his work on the Maclaurin series, a mathematical tool used to represent functions as infinite sums.
While the name Flay is not as common today as it once was, it has a rich history that spans multiple centuries and cultures. Its origins can be traced back to Old English and the profession of skinning and tanning, reflecting the practical and descriptive nature of many early names.
People
Flay + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Flay as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with F
Other first names starting with F with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Flay: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Flay?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 10 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Flay 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 34,275,434 US residents.
Is Flay a common name?
We classify Flay as "Very Rare". It ranks above 28.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 85 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Flay most popular?
The single biggest year for Flay was 1916, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Flay is about 84 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
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 Flay in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Flay a male name?
Yes, 94.1% of people registered as Flay 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 Flay still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Flay 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 Flay 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.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people share the name Flay?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.