COMPILED FROM THE FEDERAL REGISTERS, 1880 TO THE PRESENT
THE ENDANGERED NAMES LIST
American first names, tracked to the federal reporting line.

FROM THE REGISTER — THE VANISHED

Gay
A female given name · United States

BELOW THE FEDERAL REPORTING LINE SINCE 1983 — 43 YEARS

Gay (F): reported births per year0150300450600750188019001920194019601980200020202025FEDERAL REPORTING LINE (5)PEAK 682 — 1959
Reported births per year, 1880–2025. The y-axis starts at zero. Years below the reporting line appear as gaps, not zeros.

The largest name in the vanished file. The word changed its meaning; the name paid for it. Gay was reported above the federal line from 1886 to 1982, peaking at 682 births in 1959 — 17,985 recorded in all. It has not appeared in the register since: 43 years below the line, and counting.

REGISTER EXTRACT
First reported1886
Last reported1982
Peak1959 — 682 births
Total recorded, 1886–202517,985
Years above the line95 of a possible 140
Longest absence43 years (1983–2025, ongoing)

Nearby in the register

Barb

The Vanished · 1938–1972 · peak 1960

Gaye

The Vanished · 1909–1976 · peak 1960

Marge

The Vanished · 1889–1976 · peak 1941

Osie

The Vanished · 1880–1961 · peak 1927

Source: U.S. Social Security Administration national names file (1880–2025). Names below 5 occurrences in a year are not reported.

Somewhere, a grandmother is unsurprised.

A collection of THE MUSEUM OF HOPEFUL MACHINES