Gaby
A feminine variant of Gabriel, meaning "God is my strength".
Name Census estimates that about 1,377 living Americans carry the first name Gaby. It is a predominantly female name (98.2% of registrations). The average person named Gaby today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gaby births was 2007 (70 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gaby. 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.
People living today
1.4K
~ 1 in 248,914 Americans
Peak year
2007
70 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2006 SSA rank
#3,836
Tracked since 1920
Gender
Gender distribution for Gaby
Gaby leans heavily female at 98.2% of total registrations, but 26 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Gaby as a male name
- Ranked #12,666 in 2006
- 5 male births in 2006
- Peak: 1991 (6 births)
Gaby as a female name
- Ranked #3,836 in 2024
- 39 female births in 2024
- Peak: 2007 (70 births)
Popularity
Gaby: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gaby from the 1920s through to the 2020s, spanning 10 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 452 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Gaby remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gaby 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 Gaby during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gabys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 10 states and territories. California, Texas, Florida recorded the most babies named Gaby, while Maryland, Alabama, North Carolina recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 52 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Gaby
The name Gaby finds its origins in the German language, deriving from the biblical name Gabriel, which means "God is my strength" in Hebrew. The name Gaby gained popularity as a diminutive form of Gabriel in the late 19th century.
In Germany, the name Gaby was commonly used as a nickname for both males and females named Gabriel or Gabrielle. However, over time, it became more prevalent as a standalone feminine name.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gaby can be found in the 1886 German novel "Frau Sorge" by Rudolf Wildenbruch, where a character bears this name.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have carried the name Gaby. One of the most famous was Gaby Deslys (1884-1920), a French actress and dancer who was a prominent figure in the Parisian entertainment scene of the early 20th century.
Another well-known Gaby was Gaby Morlay (1893-1964), a French film actress who appeared in numerous silent and sound films during the 1920s and 1930s.
In the world of sports, Gaby Andersen-Schiess (1945-2021) was a Swiss Alpine skier who won a gold medal in the downhill event at the 1964 Winter Olympics.
Gaby Kennard (1944-2022) was an Australian television presenter and journalist who hosted various programs on the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) for over three decades.
Gaby Roslin (born 1964) is a British television presenter and actress, best known for hosting popular shows such as "The Big Breakfast" and "Children in Need."
While these are just a few examples, the name Gaby has been borne by many notable individuals throughout history, reflecting its enduring popularity across various cultures and time periods.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Gaby
People
Gaby + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gaby as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gaby: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gaby?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,377 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gaby 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 248,914 US residents.
Is Gaby a common name?
We classify Gaby as "Rare". It ranks above 92% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 1,427 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gaby most popular?
The single biggest year for Gaby was 2007, when 70 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gaby is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Gaby a female name?
Yes, 98.2% of people registered as Gaby 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.
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.