Geddy
Anglicized form of the Scottish surname Geddie, derived from Geddes, a place name meaning "person from Geddes", of uncertain origin.
Name Census estimates that about 180 living Americans carry the first name Geddy. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Geddy today is around 31 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Geddy births was 1982 (14 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Geddy. 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.
People living today
180
~ 1 in 1,904,191 Americans
Peak year
1982
14 babies that year
Average age
31
years old
2020 SSA rank
#12,688
Tracked since 1979
Census
Geddy in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 230 people with the first name Geddy, which placed it at #35,134 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
#35,134
National first-name rank
People counted
230
230 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
82.6% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Geddy
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Geddy is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.8%) 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 Geddy 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 Geddy at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.6% · 190
- Hispanic or Latino7.8% · 18
- Two or more races5.2% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 4
Popularity
Geddy: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Geddy from the 1970s through to the 2020s, spanning 6 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1990s, with 86 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
Geddy 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 Geddy during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Geddys live
Origin
Meaning and history of Geddy
The name Geddy is a rare and unique given name with a fascinating history that spans across various cultures and time periods. Its origins can be traced back to the ancient Germanic languages, where it is believed to have derived from the word "gaud," which translates to "wealth" or "fortune."
In the Middle Ages, the name Geddy emerged as a variant of the Old English name "Gedda" or "Gydda," which was commonly used among Anglo-Saxon communities. This name was likely influenced by the Old Norse name "Gauti," which was derived from the name of an ancient Germanic tribe known as the Gautar or Geats.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Geddy can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of lands and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This historical record includes entries for individuals bearing variations of the name, such as "Geddius" and "Geddi."
Throughout the centuries, the name Geddy has been borne by several notable figures. One of the earliest was Geddy ap Rhys (c. 1240-1292), a Welsh landowner and military leader who played a significant role in the Welsh Wars of Independence against the English. Another prominent figure was Sir Geddy Vaux (c. 1495-1556), an English courtier and Member of Parliament during the reign of Henry VIII.
In the realm of literature, the name Geddy made an appearance in the works of the renowned English poet and playwright William Shakespeare. In his play "The Taming of the Shrew," one of the characters is named "Geddes," which is believed to be a variation of the name Geddy.
Moving forward in time, the name Geddy gained popularity in the 19th century with the birth of Geddy Haworth (1832-1903), a prominent English businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of the city of Bradford.
Another notable figure bearing the name Geddy was Geddy Thomas (1920-2002), an American jazz drummer and bandleader who was active in the music scene of the mid-20th century. His unique style and contributions to the genre of jazz earned him a place in the history of American music.
While the name Geddy may seem uncommon in modern times, its rich history and connections to various cultures and historical figures make it a fascinating and intriguing choice for a given name.
People
Geddy + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Geddy 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
Geddy: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Geddy?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 180 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Geddy 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 1,904,191 US residents.
Is Geddy a common name?
We classify Geddy as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 185 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Geddy most popular?
The single biggest year for Geddy was 1982, when 14 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Geddy is about 31 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Geddy in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 230 people with the name Geddy, or 0.08 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #35,134 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 Geddy 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 Geddy?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Geddy leans strongly male. 221 people counted with this name were male (94.4%), compared with 13 female bearers (5.6%). 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 Geddy?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Geddy is White at 82.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.8%) 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 Geddy most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Geddy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.6% (190 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 Geddy in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Geddy a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Geddy 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 Geddy still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Geddy 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 Geddy 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 have the name Geddy?
If you just want to know how many Americans are named Geddy, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.