Jeffey
Variant form of the masculine name Jeffrey, derived from the Germanic given name Geoffrey, meaning "pledge of peace".
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the first name Jeffey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Jeffey today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Jeffey births was 1967 (10 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Jeffey. 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
132
~ 1 in 2,596,624 Americans
Peak year
1967
10 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
1991 SSA rank
#6,195
Tracked since 1955
Popularity
Jeffey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Jeffey from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1960s, with 65 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1960s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Jeffey 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 Jeffey 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 Jeffey
The name Jeffey is believed to have originated from the Old French name "Geoffrey", which itself is derived from the Germanic name "Gaufrid". The name "Gaufrid" is composed of two elements: "gau", meaning "territory" or "district", and "frid", meaning "peace". Thus, the name Jeffey can be interpreted as "peaceful territory" or "peaceful ruler".
The name Jeffey first appeared in written records during the Middle Ages, particularly in France and England. One of the earliest known bearers of this name was Geoffrey Plantagenet, Count of Anjou, who lived from 1113 to 1151. He was the father of King Henry II of England and played a significant role in the Angevin dynasty.
In the 12th century, the name Jeffey gained popularity among the Norman nobility in England. One notable figure was Geoffrey of Monmouth, a cleric and one of the major figures in the propagation of Arthurian legend. He wrote the influential work "Historia Regum Britanniae" (History of the Kings of Britain) around 1136.
During the 13th century, the name Jeffey was borne by several prominent figures in the Catholic Church. Geoffrey de Lusion, who lived from around 1200 to 1260, was a French cardinal and a notable theologian. Geoffrey Chaucer, the famous English poet and author of "The Canterbury Tales", was born around 1343 and is considered one of the greatest poets of the Middle Ages.
In the 16th century, the name Jeffey was associated with Sir Geoffrey Fenton, an English writer and statesman who served as the Secretary of State for Ireland under Queen Elizabeth I. He was born around 1539 and played a crucial role in the Tudor conquest of Ireland.
Another notable figure with the name Jeffey was Geoffrey Keating, an Irish Catholic priest and historian who lived from around 1569 to 1644. He is best known for his extensive work "Foras Feasa ar Éirinn" (The History of Ireland), which was an influential chronicle of Irish history and culture.
While the name Jeffey has lost some of its popularity in recent times, it continues to be used and has a rich historical legacy spanning centuries and various cultures.
People
Jeffey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Jeffey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with J
Other first names starting with J with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Jeffey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Jeffey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 132 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Jeffey 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 2,596,624 US residents.
Is Jeffey a common name?
We classify Jeffey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 68.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 149 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Jeffey most popular?
The single biggest year for Jeffey was 1967, when 10 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Jeffey is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Jeffey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Jeffey 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.
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.