Drey
A diminutive form of Andrew, meaning "manly" or "brave" of Greek origin.
Name Census estimates that about 430 living Americans carry the first name Drey. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Drey today is around 22 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Drey births was 1995 (29 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Drey. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Drey with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
430
~ 1 in 797,103 Americans
Peak year
1995
29 babies that year
Average age
22
years old
2024 SSA rank
#8,469
Tracked since 1985
Census
Drey in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 502 people with the first name Drey, which placed it at #20,542 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#20,542
National first-name rank
People counted
502
502 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
52.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Drey
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Drey is White at 52.0%. The next largest groups are Black (18.3%) and Hispanic (12.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Drey described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Drey at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.0% · 261
- Black or African American18.3% · 92
- Hispanic or Latino12.7% · 64
- Two or more races10.2% · 51
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.6% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.2% · 16
Popularity
Drey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Drey from the 1980s through to the 2020s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 171 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1990s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Drey by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Drey during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Drey
The name Drey finds its origins in the Germanic languages, with its roots dating back to the early medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old High German word "drau," which translates to "brave" or "courageous." This name was initially prevalent among the tribes of modern-day Germany and surrounding regions.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Drey can be found in the Nibelungenlied, an epic poem from the 13th century. In this literary work, Drey was the name of a valiant warrior who fought alongside the renowned hero Siegfried. This association with bravery and heroism may have contributed to the name's popularity during that era.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Drey. One such figure was Drey von Andechs (1180-1237), a German nobleman and crusader who participated in the Fifth Crusade. His exploits and leadership during the crusades earned him recognition and respect among his contemporaries.
In the realm of literature, Drey Heyward (1886-1976) was an American author and playwright, best known for his novel "Porgy," which later inspired the opera "Porgy and Bess." His work shed light on the African American experience in the early 20th century and contributed significantly to the cultural landscape of the time.
Another prominent figure was Drey Scholes (1920-2002), a British computer scientist and mathematician. Scholes played a crucial role in the development of early computer systems and programming languages, contributing significantly to the field of computer science during its formative years.
In the world of sports, Drey Becker (1926-2012) was a legendary German footballer who played as a striker for Bayern Munich and the German national team. He was part of the West German squad that won the 1954 FIFA World Cup, cementing his place in the annals of football history.
While the name Drey has its roots in the Germanic languages, it has also found use in other cultures and regions over time. However, its core meaning and association with bravery and courage remain consistent throughout its history, reflecting the enduring legacy of this ancient name.
People
Drey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Drey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with D
Other first names starting with D with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Drey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Drey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 430 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Drey going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 797,103 US residents.
Is Drey a common name?
We classify Drey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 83.1% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 437 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Drey most popular?
The single biggest year for Drey was 1995, when 29 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Drey is about 22 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Drey in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 502 people with the name Drey, or 0.17 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #20,542 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Drey in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Drey?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Drey leans strongly male. 460 people counted with this name were male (93.1%), compared with 34 female bearers (6.9%). The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Drey?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Drey is White at 52.0%. The next largest groups are Black (18.3%) and Hispanic (12.7%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Drey most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Drey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.0% (261 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Drey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Drey a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Drey in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Drey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Drey in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Drey can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people are named Drey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.