Chauncey
Masculine · “from the Norman surname Chauncy”
Chauncey is given to both — 9,685 boys and 508 girls since 1880. See Chauncey as a girl nameSee other names given to both
Chauncey is a Norman family name that became an American first name in colonial times. Two nineteenth-century New Yorkers made it famous: Chauncey Olcott, the tenor who wrote My Wild Irish Rose, and Chauncey Depew, the railroad president and senator whose name is on a village near Buffalo.
How old is the name Chauncey?
Chauncey was already in use when US birth records began in 1880 — it is at least 145 years old. The typical Chauncey alive today was born around 1978, making them about 47 years old. About 6,600 people named Chauncey are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Chauncey most popular?
Chauncey peaked in 1890, reaching #282 nationally. Today it ranks #4396, 4,114 places below that high. See the whole 1890 chart.
Lists built from the same records:
Where it comes from
From Chauncy (Norman surname) to Chauncey
The story of Chauncey
The Chauncy surname came to America with English settlers and was in use as a first name in New England during the colonial period. Chauncey Olcott, born Chancellor John Olcott in Buffalo in 1858, became a leading tenor of Irish-themed musical plays, wrote My Wild Irish Rose, and co-wrote the lyrics of When Irish Eyes Are Smiling. Chauncey Depew, president of the New York Central Railroad and a United States senator, was one of the most sought-after after-dinner speakers of his day, and the village of Depew, near Buffalo, is named after him.
Meaning
from the Norman surname Chauncy
The name comes from the family name Chauncy, taken from a place in France. Which place, and what its name meant, has not been firmly established.
How the name formed
- ChauncyNorman surname
- ChaunceyAmerican first name
Pronouncing Chauncey
CHAWN-see
Two syllables, stress on the first. Many Americans say CHAHN-see; both are standard.
What the data says
146 years of official birth records
The long climb, and where it stands now
The same years in position rather than babies
- First recorded
- 1880
- Most boys named
- 1981173 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #282reached in 1890
- Change vs 2022
- −28.1%23 in 2025, from 32
Rank is a position, a count is a headcount, and they move independently — a name can hold its rank while the number of babies behind it falls. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration.
Chauncey in other languages
Strongest US states over the last decade: Florida, California, Georgia.
Chaunceys among us
people named Chauncey are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 74,264 born in 2025 was named Chauncey
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
Fashion outlook
Chauncey sits in the calm middle of the cycle — neither chasing a wave nor sliding off one. Middle-of-the-cycle names age slowly and predictably.
A scored estimate from 146 years of naming cycles — not a prophecy. Great names outlive statistics. How this is scored
Chauncey beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Chauncey in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- A long American record, with namesakes in music and politics.
- An established name rather than a coinage, in use as a first name since colonial times.
- Rare among children today, so it will seldom be shared.
- To many ears it sounds formal and patrician, and that impression comes attached.
- Chauncey, Chauncy and Chancey all occur, so it will need spelling out.
- A very few girls are recorded with it; as a surname-name used almost only for boys, it will be read as masculine.
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What they receive
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Chauncey
Masculine · #4396 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Chaunceys are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 6,600 people named Chauncey are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Chauncey in 2025?
- Chauncey ranks #4396 among US boy names in 2025, with 23 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Chauncey?
- About 1 in every 74,264 US boys born in 2025 was named Chauncey — 23 in all.
- Will my child share the name Chauncey with classmates?
- Chauncey will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Chauncey
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Odell#4396 · Corwin#4396 · Tennyson#4396 · Marques#4396 · Manu#4396 · Omid#4396 · Zackariah#4396 · Burton#4396
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Chauncey? See the current top 100.
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US figures from the Social Security Administration. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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