Gay

French
"joyful"

Gay Origin and Meaning

The name Gay is a boy's name of French origin meaning "joyful".

The meaning of this word flipped from "cheerful" to "homosexual" during the twentieth century, and it's now almost certainly too loaded to sit comfortably as a baby name. Which is a shame as sound-wise it's very appealing, just a short step away from Gray, Gale and Guy.

# 996 in the US

Gay Rank in US Top 1000

Gay Popularity

Famous People Named Gay

  • Gay Talese
    American journalist
  • Gay Hendricks
    American self,help author
  • Gay Robert Brewer
    Jr., American golfer
  • Gaylord Damian "Gay" Bryan
    American track athlete
  • Gabriel Mary "Gay" Byrne
    Irish TV presenter
  • Gabriel Alexander "Gay" Mitchell
    Irish MEP
  • Gay Kindersley
    British jockey and trainer

Gay in Pop Culture

  • Gay Langland
    Clark Gable's character in The Misfits (1961)
  • Gaylord "Gay" Focker
    character in Meet the Parents and Meet the Fockers (commonly referred to as "Greg")