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Gaynor

UnisexGirls' nameBoys' name

Form of Guinevere

Gaynor has been given to 200 babies in the U.S. since 1926. It was used fewer than 5 times in 2025, so it doesn't appear in the latest year's list — today it's a genuinely uncommon pick. Its peak year was 1939, with 9 recorded. It's used for both sexes: 53% girls, 47% boys all-time.

Babies named Gaynor, 1968

1 in 676,000

Gaynor over time, 1880–2025

GirlsBoys
05101518801900192019401960198020002020

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 Gaps mean the name was given fewer than 5 times that year; these counts are unpublished.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 — Gaynor over time

In 1968, Gaynor went to 100% girls and 0% boys.

19191968

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.

Gaynor: meaning, origin, and history

Form of Guinevere

Welsh

What Gaynor means

Gaynor is a form of Guinevere.

Documented naming usage and pronunciation

Gaynor is used in English (British) and Welsh.

Another recorded pronunciation is /ˈɡeɪ.nɔː/ and /ˈɡeɪ.nɔɹ/ for Gaynor.

Meaning behind the documented name family

The name developed through Gaynor → Guinevere. The family’s meaning is “white phantom”, recorded in the naming reference for Guinevere.

Origin, language, and formation

Gaynor is used in English. Its origins include Welsh.

Related names and everyday forms

Related names include Guinevere and Gaenor.

American usage and historical context

In the United States, 105 girls were recorded with the name Gaynor between 1926 and 1968. Its highest annual count was 9 in 1939; its best national rank was #2,992 in 1939.

In the United States, 95 boys were recorded with the name Gaynor between 1919 and 1958. Its highest annual count was 11 in 1933; its best national rank was #2,273 in 1933.

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.

Wiktionary material is available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

How common is Gaynor?

Gaynor had fewer than 5 recorded uses in 2025, so these figures use 1968, the last year it was published.

Among all babies, 1968
1 in 676,000
5 of 3,378,301 births
Among girls only
1 in 328,000
<0.01% of girls
Rank, 1968
Unranked
Fewer than 5 uses
Coin-flip room size
468,333 kids
Even odds of a second one

Where Gaynor sits on the popularity scale

Rarest published (5 a year)#1 — Olivia (13,544)

Chance at least one other child shares the name

If the other children were drawn at random from the 1968 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 500Under 1%

Put another way: gather 468,333 children born in 1968 and it's an even bet that one of them is another Gaynor. In a class of 30 the chance is Under 1%.

When Gaynors were born

Half of everyone ever recorded as Gaynor was born before 1949 — so the typical Gaynor is around 76 today.

Median birth year
1949
About 76 years old
Biggest decade
1950s
31.4% of all use
Born in the last 25 years
62.9%
A modern name
Recorded since 1950
44
People you could plausibly meet
Choose a decade

1950s — 31.4% of all recorded uses (33).

Is Gaynor 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
—
Not ranked then
Rank vs 5 years ago
New entry
Not ranked then
Rank vs 10 years ago
—
Not ranked then
Births vs 10 years ago
—
Not published both years
Share of its own peak
0%
Peak was 1939 (9)
Years since peak
86
Years
Year-to-year steadiness
Volatile
42.6% average annual change
Best rank ever
#2,992
1939

Spellings of Gaynor

Gaynor is not the most common spelling — Taylor is, with 94.4% against Gaynor's 0.03%.

Grouped by closeness of spelling (up to two letter changes), same sex, with a floor on all-time use. It catches Sophia/Sofia and Aiden/Ayden, and misses spellings that sound alike but look different, like Sean and Shawn.

Gaynor around the world

Where Gaynor 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
    1996–2001
    #3,998
    in 2001
  • Scotland
    1974–1999
    #532
    in 1999
  • South Australia
    1944–1997
    #681
    in 1997

Popularity data from Office for National Statistics, National Records of Scotland and Consumer and Business Services (South Australia). ONS, NRS data under Open Government Licence v3.0. CBS SA data under CC BY 4.0.

Gaynor by the numbers

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

As a girl's name

Rank in 2025
Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
—
Best rank ever
#2,992
1939
Peak year
1939
9 that year
First recorded
1926
Last recorded
1968
All-time count
105
Count in 2025
Under 5

As a boy's name

Rank in 2025
Unranked
Trend vs 5 yrs ago
—
Best rank ever
#2,273
1933
Peak year
1933
11 that year
First recorded
1919
Last recorded
1958
All-time count
95
Count in 2025
Under 5

Names similar to Gaynor

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

GayaneGaylinGaythaGayatriGayleeGaynelGayliaGaylonGaynaGaylanGayanneGaylynGayannGaylenKonnorElynorGayathriGayaGaylynnLeanorConorGayleenEllinorEllenor

Sibling names for Gaynor

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 Gaynor

Top names of 1939, Gaynor's peak yearThe 1930s in fullOther names that peaked in 1939Girls' names starting with GUncommon Welsh Girl Names