Gage
A name meaning "pledge" or "to measure".
Name Census estimates that about 59,910 living Americans carry the first name Gage. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Gage today is around 21 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Gage births was 2003 (2,950 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Gage. 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 Gage with official rankings and popularity over time.
Key insights
- • Although Gage is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 246 girls registered with the name since 1880.
People living today
60K
~ 1 in 5,721 Americans
Peak year
2003
2,950 babies that year
Average age
21
years old
2024 SSA rank
#831
Tracked since 1914
Census
Gage in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 53,254 people with the first name Gage, which placed it at #857 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
#857
National first-name rank
People counted
53K
53,254 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
17.6
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
85.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gage
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gage is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Gage 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 Gage at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 45,578
- Hispanic or Latino6.5% · 3,451
- Two or more races5.2% · 2,774
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 628
- Black or African American1.2% · 627
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 196
Gender
Gender distribution for Gage
Out of the 60,801 babies given the name Gage since 1880, 99.6% were registered as male. The name sits firmly on the male side of the spectrum, with only a handful of female registrations across the entire dataset.
Gage as a male name
- Ranked #831 in 2024
- 297 male births in 2024
- Peak: 2003 (2,939 births)
Gage as a female name
- Ranked #16,123 in 2022
- 5 female births in 2022
- Peak: 2005 (16 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Gage appears almost entirely male. Of the 53,248 people counted with this name, 99.5% were male and only a very small share were female.
Popularity
Gage: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Gage from the 1910s through to the 2020s, spanning 12 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 27,530 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Gage 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 Gage during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Gages live
The SSA's state-level files cover 50 states and territories. Texas, California, Ohio recorded the most babies named Gage, while Rhode Island, Vermont, Delaware recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,189 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Gage
The given name Gage originates from the French language and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old French word "gauge," which means a pledge, security, or token. The name is also linked to the Old French word "gager," meaning to pledge or wager.
In the 12th and 13th centuries, the name Gage was commonly used in France and other parts of Europe as a symbolic representation of a pledge or promise. It was often given to children as a reminder of the importance of keeping one's word and honoring commitments.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Gage can be found in the 13th-century French epic poem "The Song of Roland," where a character named Gage is mentioned. Additionally, there are references to individuals bearing the name in various medieval records and historical documents from that period.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Gage. One such individual was Thomas Gage (1597-1656), an English Catholic missionary who served as a Dominican friar in Spain and the West Indies. Another was Thomas Gage (1721-1787), a British general who played a significant role in the American Revolutionary War.
Henry Gage (1599-1634) was an English courtier and Member of Parliament during the reign of King Charles I. He was known for his involvement in various political intrigues and conspiracies.
Matilda Gage (1826-1898) was an influential American writer, activist, and a prominent figure in the women's suffrage movement. She co-authored the influential book "History of Woman Suffrage" and advocated for women's rights and social reform.
Finally, John Gage (1786-1842) was a British-born American lawyer and politician who served as the 12th Governor of the District of Columbia from 1835 to 1836.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have borne the name Gage, reflecting its long-standing presence and significance across various cultures and time periods.
People
Gage + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Gage as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with G
Other first names starting with G with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Gage: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Gage?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 59,910 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Gage 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 5,721 US residents.
Is Gage a common name?
We classify Gage as "Uncommon". It ranks above 99.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 60,801 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Gage most popular?
The single biggest year for Gage was 2003, when 2,950 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Gage is about 21 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Gage in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 53,254 people with the name Gage, or 17.63 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #857 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 Gage 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 Gage?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Gage appears almost entirely male. Of the 53,248 people counted with this name, 99.5% were male and only a very small share were female. 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 Gage?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Gage is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Gage most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Gage in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (45,578 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 Gage in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Gage a male name?
Yes, 99.6% of people registered as Gage 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 Gage still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Gage 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 Gage 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 share the name Gage?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.