Yiddy
A diminutive form of the Yiddish name Yidel or Idel.
Name Census estimates that about 48 living Americans carry the first name Yiddy. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Yiddy today is around 5 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Yiddy births was 2023 (12 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Yiddy. 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 Yiddy with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Yiddy. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
48
~ 1 in 7,140,715 Americans
Peak year
2023
12 babies that year
Average age
5
years old
2024 SSA rank
#10,847
Tracked since 2015
Popularity
Yiddy: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Yiddy from the 2010s through to the 2020s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2020s, with 33 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Yiddy 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 Yiddy during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Yiddys live
Origin
Meaning and history of Yiddy
The given name Yiddy is a relatively uncommon one, with its origins shrouded in mystery. It is believed to have emerged from the Yiddish language, which was the historical vernacular of the Ashkenazi Jewish communities of Central and Eastern Europe.
One theory suggests that Yiddy is a diminutive form of the Yiddish name Yidl, which itself is derived from the word "Yid," meaning a Jew or a Jewish person. This would place the name's roots in the cultural and linguistic traditions of the Ashkenazi Jewish diaspora, dating back several centuries.
Another possible origin for Yiddy is that it is a variant spelling or adaptation of the Hebrew name Iddo, which means "timely" or "at the appointed time." In the Bible, Iddo was the name of several individuals, including a prophet during the reign of King Solomon.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Yiddy are scarce, but it is believed to have been in use among Ashkenazi Jewish communities as early as the 17th or 18th century. One notable bearer of the name was Yiddy Gershovitz, a Russian-born Jewish writer and translator who lived from 1871 to 1943.
In the 19th century, a prominent figure bearing the name Yiddy was Yiddy Kissin, a Russian-born Jewish entrepreneur and philanthropist who lived from 1832 to 1917. He was known for his business acumen and his support of various charitable causes within the Jewish community.
Another historical figure with the given name Yiddy was Yiddy Solomons, a South African boxer and featherweight champion who lived from 1897 to 1959. He was renowned for his skills in the ring and his contributions to the sport of boxing in his home country.
In the realm of literature, Yiddy Kornblatt was a Yiddish writer and poet who lived from 1884 to 1958. He was celebrated for his works that explored the experiences of Jewish communities in Eastern Europe and their struggles with identity and assimilation.
While the name Yiddy may be relatively uncommon today, it carries a rich historical significance, rooted in the cultural and linguistic traditions of the Ashkenazi Jewish diaspora. Its bearers have left their mark across various fields, from literature and boxing to business and philanthropy, contributing to the diverse tapestry of human experience.
People
Yiddy + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Yiddy as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Y
Other first names starting with Y with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Yiddy: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Yiddy?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 48 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Yiddy 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 7,140,715 US residents.
Is Yiddy a common name?
We classify Yiddy as "Very Rare". It ranks above 53.7% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 48 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Yiddy most popular?
The single biggest year for Yiddy was 2023, when 12 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Yiddy is about 5 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 Yiddy in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Yiddy a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Yiddy 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 Yiddy still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Yiddy 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 Yiddy 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 Yiddy?
Want to know how many Americans are named Yiddy? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.