Finlay
Masculine · “fair warrior”
Finlay is given to both — 1,102 boys and 204 girls since 1880. See other names given to both
Finlay is the fair warrior in Gaelic — fionn and laoch — and Macbeth's father was Findláech, mormaer of Moray.
How old is the name Finlay?
Finlay first appears in US birth records in 1918 — 107 years ago. The typical Finlay is a kid of about 10 — this name's wave is very recent. About 1,100 people named Finlay are estimated to be alive in the US today.
When was the name Finlay most popular?
Finlay peaked in 2015, reaching #2145 nationally. Today it ranks #2604, 459 places below that high. See the whole 2015 chart.
Finlay appears on these lists:
Where it comes from
From fionn laoch to Finlay
The story of Finlay
Findláech mac Ruaidrí was mormaer of Moray and the father of the historical Macbeth, who ruled Scotland for seventeen years and was rather a better king than the play allows. The name means fair warrior. Finlay is standard in Scotland and appears in American records in current use.
Meaning
fair warrior, fair hero
From the Scottish Gaelic Fionnlagh — fionn, 'fair' or 'white', and laoch, 'warrior' or 'hero'. Findláech of Moray was Macbeth's father. The elements are ordinary Gaelic and the reading undisputed.
How the name formed
- fionn laoch
- Fionnlagh
- Finlay
Related forms: Fionnlagh · Findlay · Finley
Pronouncing Finlay
FIN-lay
Two syllables, stress on the first. Gaelic Fionnlagh is FYOON-lakh.
Nicknames for Finlay
Moderate
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
- 1918
- Most boys named
- 201564 — the highest on record
- Peak rank
- #2145reached in 2015
- Change vs 2024
- −9.1%50 in 2025, from 55
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.
Finlay in other languages
The same name elsewhere
- Fionnlagh in Scottish Gaelic — related form
- Findlay in English — spelling variant
- Finley in English — spelling variant
Strongest US states over the last decade: California, New York, Pennsylvania. International figures from National Records of Scotland. Sources
Finlays among us
people named Finlay are estimated to be alive in the US today
About 1 boy in 34,162 born in 2025 was named Finlay
Estimated from SSA birth records and published actuarial life tables. Method
Is it right for you
What happens to a name after it peaks
The Trevan test
Every popular name lives one long story — a climb, a peak, a slow settling back. Finlay's later chapters haven't been written yet, so we borrowed them: Trevan climbed just as high around 1996, and its whole arc is on record. Line the two peaks up, and Trevan's path sketches the road Finlay is walking now.
Finlay 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
Where Finlay is headed
Finlay should hold steady through 2030 — the curve is flat, and flat curves are the most predictable kind. Its history is short or jumpy, though, so read this as a sketch rather than a promise.
Low confidence — fitted on official counts through 2025.
A damped-trend projection of the official birth data — a sketch of momentum, not a promise. Every name's forecast, ranked.
Finlay beside its neighbors
The names ranked closest to Finlay in 2025, in babies rather than position — the bars are to scale.
US boys given each name in 2025.
The trade-off
- That Macbeth's father carried it is a first-rate historical anchor.
- Finn is available as a short form with a large record.
- The fair-warrior meaning is transparent and strong.
- At least three spellings of the sound are in circulation.
- It is used for both sexes in America.
- The Gaelic original is said quite differently.
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What they receive
Someone added a name to your list
Finlay
Masculine · #2604 in the U.S.
Frequently asked
- How many Finlays are there in the world?
- No country counts the world's names, so there is no worldwide figure — anyone quoting one is estimating. About 1,100 people named Finlay are estimated to be alive in the US today.
- How popular is the name Finlay in 2025?
- Finlay ranks #2604 among US boy names in 2025, with 50 babies given the name.
- How rare is the name Finlay?
- About 1 in every 34,162 US boys born in 2025 was named Finlay — 50 in all.
- Will my child share the name Finlay with classmates?
- Finlay will almost certainly be the only one in school.
Ranked beside Finlay
Names sitting at a similar level of popularity right now.
Yahia#2604 · Larson#2604 · Mazin#2604 · Rowe#2604 · Hendrik#2604 · Dayvon#2604 · Kipton#2604 · Kamran#2604
Looking for what else is popular rather than what resembles Finlay? See the current top 100.
Choosing between Finlay and another name?
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Which one would you pick?
Your gut first, the numbers after — the split shows once you pick.
US figures from the Social Security Administration; international figures from national statistics agencies. 1880–2025. Data & methodology
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