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

Gaye
A female given name · United States

BELOW THE FEDERAL REPORTING LINE SINCE 1977 — 49 YEARS

Gaye (F): reported births per year080160240320400188019001920194019601980200020202025FEDERAL REPORTING LINE (5)PEAK 268 — 1960
Reported births per year, 1880–2025. The y-axis starts at zero. Years below the reporting line appear as gaps, not zeros.

Gay's sister spelling, which followed the same curve to the same end. Gaye was reported above the federal line from 1909 to 1976, peaking at 268 births in 1960 — 5,746 recorded in all. It has not appeared in the register since: 49 years below the line, and counting.

REGISTER EXTRACT
First reported1909
Last reported1976
Peak1960 — 268 births
Total recorded, 1909–20255,746
Years above the line67 of a possible 117
Longest absence49 years (1977–2025, ongoing)

Nearby in the register

Barb

The Vanished · 1938–1972 · peak 1960

Gay

The Vanished · 1886–1982 · peak 1959

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