Glendy
Feminine name with a Scottish or Gaelic origin meaning "valley dweller".
Name Census estimates that about 495 living Americans carry the first name Glendy. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Glendy today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Glendy births was 2005 (22 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Glendy. 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
495
~ 1 in 692,433 Americans
Peak year
2005
22 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#9,768
Tracked since 1978
Popularity
Glendy: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Glendy from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 181 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2000s peak, Glendy remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Glendy 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 Glendy during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Glendys live
Origin
Meaning and history of Glendy
The name Glendy is believed to have its origins in the Gaelic language, which was spoken by the ancient Celts who inhabited the Scottish Highlands and parts of Ireland. The name is thought to be a combination of the Gaelic words "gleann" meaning "valley" and "dùn" meaning "fort" or "hill."
In the early medieval period, the name Glendy was likely used as a descriptive term to refer to someone who lived in a valley near a fortified settlement or hilltop. As time passed, it transitioned from being a descriptive term to a given name in its own right.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Glendy can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. In this text, a person named Glendy mac Áedáin is mentioned as having been killed in a battle against the Vikings in the year 867 AD.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Glendy remained relatively uncommon, but it was occasionally bestowed upon individuals born or residing in the Scottish Highlands and Western Isles. One notable bearer of the name was Glendy of Islay, a 12th-century chieftain who played a role in resisting the Norwegian occupation of the Hebrides.
In the 16th century, a Scottish soldier named Glendy Macgregor fought alongside William Wallace during the Wars of Scottish Independence against England. Macgregor's exploits were later chronicled in the literary work "The Actes and Deidis of the Illustre and Vallyeant Campioun Schir William Wallace."
During the 17th century, a Presbyterian minister named Glendy Burnet was known for his fiery sermons and his opposition to the imposition of Episcopalian forms of worship in Scotland. Burnet's defiance of the religious policies of King Charles I earned him a reputation as a staunch defender of Presbyterian principles.
In the 19th century, a Scottish engineer named Glendy Drummond played a significant role in the construction of the Forth Bridge, a iconic railway bridge spanning the Firth of Forth in eastern Scotland. Drummond's innovative techniques and attention to detail were instrumental in the successful completion of this engineering marvel.
People
Glendy + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Glendy 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
Glendy: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Glendy?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 495 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Glendy 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 692,433 US residents.
Is Glendy a common name?
We classify Glendy as "Very Rare". It ranks above 84.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 505 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Glendy most popular?
The single biggest year for Glendy was 2005, when 22 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Glendy is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Glendy a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Glendy 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.