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Cai

#2,113 in 2025UnisexBoys' nameGirls' name

Multiple documented origins; meaning depends on tradition

Cai has been given to 1,945 babies in the U.S. since 1989. In 2025 it ranked #2,113 of 13,926 boys’ names in use. Its peak year was 2022, with 108 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 75% boys, 25% girls all-time.

Babies named Cai, 2025

1 in 48,000

Cai over time, 1880–2025

BoysGirls
05010015018801900192019401960198020002020

Based on births in the U.S. Babies given the name each year. Hover the chart — or focus it and use the arrow keys — for any year. Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.

Girls or boys — Cai over time

In 2025, Cai went to 15% girls and 85% boys.

19892025

A sex is only published in years it reached five applications, so a stretch at 0% or 100% means the other side stayed under that floor — not that it was never used.

Cai: meaning, origin, and history

Multiple documented origins; meaning depends on tradition

Deeper origin not confirmed in the cited records

What Cai means

Cai has more than one naming route in the cited origin entries: distinct naming traditions.

The naming story behind Cai

A separate documented entry treats Cai as a variant of Kai. That is a personal-name relationship, which differs from translating the letters of the modern spelling into one universal English word. The linked origin entry identifies the context of this relationship.

A separate documented entry treats Cai as a form of Kay. That is a personal-name relationship, which differs from translating the letters of the modern spelling into one universal English word. The linked origin entry identifies the context of this relationship.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 1,450 boys were recorded with the name Cai between 1989 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 108 in 2022; its best national rank was #1,612 in 2022.

Over 5 years its rank rose, from #2,118 in 2020 to #2,113 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank fell, from #1,816 in 2015 to #2,113 in 2025.

In the United States, 495 girls were recorded with the name Cai between 1996 and 2025. Its highest annual count was 38 in 2020; its best national rank was #3,788 in 2020.

Over 5 years its rank fell, from #3,788 in 2020 to #8,455 in 2025. Over 10 years its rank fell, from #5,320 in 2015 to #8,455 in 2025.

Sources & methodologyReferences, data & attribution

Meaning, origin, and language notes draw on the references below.

American popularity figures use published Social Security Administration records for this exact spelling. Counts below five for a name, sex, and year are omitted.

How common is Cai?

Everything below is computed from the 2025 data — the most recent year available.

Among all babies, 2025
1 in 48,000
69 of 3,315,165 births
Among boys only
1 in 24,800
<0.01% of boys
Rank, 2025
#2,113
of 13,926 boys’ names in use
Coin-flip room size
33,304 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Cai sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Liam (20,818)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 2025 national name distribution. Real classrooms cluster by region and community, so treat these as a floor, not a ceiling.

Class of 20Under 1%
Class of 30Under 1%
Grade of 100Under 1%
School of 5001%

Put another way: gather 33,304 children born in 2025 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Cai. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Cais were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Cai was born before 2016 — so the typical Cai is around 9 today.

Median birth year
2016
About 9 years old
Biggest decade
2010s
42.8% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
94.4%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
1,450
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

2010s — 42.8% of all recorded uses (620).

Is Cai rising or falling?

Rank movement and count movement can disagree — the number of distinct names in use keeps growing, so a name holding a steady count still slides down the list. Both are shown.

Rank vs 1 year ago
−208
Places dropped
Rank vs 5 years ago
+5
Places climbed
Rank vs 10 years ago
−297
Places dropped
Births vs 10 years ago
0.84×
Fewer babies than then
Share of its own peak
63.9%
Peak was 2022 (108)
Years since peak
3
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Shifting
15.0% average annual change
Best rank ever
#1,612
2022

Where Cai is used — boys

Across 2016–2025, Cai was most concentrated in Florida — about 1 in 12,500 boys, against 1 in 31,206 across all states with data. It was least common in Pennsylvania (1 in 100,000).

18 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1Florida1 in 12,500
  2. 2Georgia1 in 16,667
  3. 3North Carolina1 in 25,000
  4. 4Texas1 in 25,000
  5. 5Virginia1 in 25,000
  6. 6California1 in 33,333
  7. 7Missouri1 in 33,333
  8. 8Alabama1 in 50,000

Shading is the share of that state's recorded boys given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings.

Where Cai is used — girls

Across 1910–2025, Cai was most concentrated in California — about 1 in — girls, against 1 in 745,886 across all states with data. It was least common in Texas (1 in —).

00 per 100,000

Most concentrated

  1. 1California1 in —
  2. 2Georgia1 in —
  3. 3Texas1 in —

Shading is the share of that state's recorded girls given this name, not the raw count — otherwise the map would just show which states are biggest. Unshaded states have no published records for this period. U.S. birth records suppress state-year counts below 5; state counts therefore don't add up to the national total. Every state links to its full rankings. Cai has too little recent state data to map, so this covers all years from 1910.

Cai around the world

Where Cai ranks in official birth records elsewhere in the world. Rankings only — the number of births isn’t comparable between places, so it isn’t shown.

  • England & Wales
    1996–2025
    #687
    in 2025
  • Scotland
    2001–2025
    #762
    in 2025
  • Northern Ireland
    1999–2023
    #272
    in 2023
  • Ireland
    2009–2023
    #660
    in 2023
  • Canada
    2007–2024
    #2,855
    in 2024
  • South Australia
    1992–2011
    #784
    in 2011

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland, Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency, Central Statistics Office, Statistics Canada and Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). ONS, NRS, NISRA data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CSO, CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0. StatCan data under Statistics Canada Open Licence.

Cai by the numbers

The raw record for each sex the name is used for.

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
#2,113
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Up 5
Best rank ever
#1,612
2022
Peak year
2022
108 that year
First recorded
1989
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
1,450
Count in 2025
69

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
#8,455
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
Down 4,667
Best rank ever
#3,788
2020
Peak year
2020
38 that year
First recorded
1996
Last recorded
2025
All-time count
495
Count in 2025
12

Names similar to Cai

Matched on shared beginnings and endings, similar length, and comparable popularity.

CaioCaineCaiusCainCaisonCainanCaidynCainenCaisenCairoCaidanCaideCailenCaigeCaidCaisynZaccaiJacaiCaidenMordecaiCailCailebCaidonCailan

Sibling names for Cai

Names from the same era and popularity tier — the two things that make a sibling set feel deliberate — skipping lookalike spellings and shared initials.

Explore around Cai

Top names of 2022, Cai's peak yearThe 2020s in fullOther names that peaked in 2022Boys' names starting with C