Gray

Where Gray comes from

* As an English, Irish, Scottish, and Norman surname, from the placename Graye-sur-Mer in Calvados, from Late Latin Graecus (“Greek”). * Also as an English surname, from the adjective gray. Compare the Irish calque McGreevy. * As a French surname, from Gray, Haute-Saône in France, from the personal name Gradus, a Gallo-Roman/Celtic pronunciation of Gratus, from the name Gratius.
— Wiktionary's entry for Gray
  • 1 syllable
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1885
    First appearance
    #936 among boys, 5 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  2. 1889
    Peak, #789
    7 babies named Gray — more than any year before or since.
  3. 1890
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births.
  4. 1914
    Mostly boys from here
    Until now more girls than boys got the name; from this year it's the other way round, and has stayed that way.
  5. 1942
    Gray Davis born
    Governor of California from 1999 to 2003
  6. 1979
    Gray Maynard born
    American mixed martial artist
In the dictionary
  • A male given name.
Namesakes
  • Gray Davis · Governor of California from 1999 to 2003, born 1942
  • Gray Maynard · American mixed martial artist, born 1979
  • Gray Frederickson · American film producer, 1937–2022
  • Gray Barker · American writer, 1925–1984
  • Gray Haddock · American actor and film producer, born 1972

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.