Ruey
A masculine name of Aboriginal Australian origin meaning "bright" or "shining".
Name Census estimates that about 9 living Americans carry the first name Ruey. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 88.9% of registrations being female. The average person named Ruey today is around 85 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ruey births was 1925 (7 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ruey. 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.
Key insights
- • The typical person named Ruey is about 85 years old today, placing it firmly among the names of earlier generations. Most living Rueys were born before 1951.
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ruey. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
9
~ 1 in 38,083,815 Americans
Peak year
1925
7 babies that year
Average age
85
years old
1945 SSA rank
#3,707
Tracked since 1885
Census
Ruey in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 183 people with the first name Ruey, which placed it at #40,598 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
#40,598
National first-name rank
People counted
183
183 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.1
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Asian and Pacific Islander
47.0% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ruey
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ruey is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.0%. The next largest groups are White (41.5%) and Black (6.6%). 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 Ruey 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 Ruey at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander47.0% · 86
- White41.5% · 76
- Black or African American6.6% · 12
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.1% · 2
- Two or more races1.1% · 2
Gender
Gender distribution for Ruey
Ruey leans heavily female at 88.9% of total registrations, but 10 boys have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Ruey as a male name
- Ranked #3,707 in 1945
- 5 male births in 1945
- Peak: 1920 (5 births)
Ruey as a female name
- Ranked #6,550 in 1955
- 5 female births in 1955
- Peak: 1925 (7 births)
2020 Census snapshot
The 2020 Census sex table shows Ruey on both sides of the split. Of the 198 people counted with this name, 101 were male (51.0%) and 97 were female (49.0%).
Popularity
Ruey: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Ruey from the 1880s through to the 1950s, spanning 8 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 32 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1920s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Ruey 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 Ruey 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 Ruey
The name Ruey is a rare and unique name with roots that can be traced back to ancient civilizations. It is believed to have originated from the Old Gaelic language, which was spoken in Ireland and parts of Scotland during the medieval period.
One of the earliest known references to the name Ruey can be found in the Annals of Ulster, a medieval chronicle that records events in Ireland from the 5th to the 16th century. In this text, the name is spelled as "Ruaidhrí," which is thought to be derived from the Gaelic words "ruadh" meaning "red" and "rí" meaning "king."
The name Ruey was particularly popular among Irish nobility and ruling families during the Middle Ages. One notable figure with this name was Ruaidhrí Ua Conchobair, who was the King of Connacht and High King of Ireland from 1166 to 1186. He played a significant role in resisting the Norman invasion of Ireland and is remembered as a skilled military leader and diplomat.
Another historical figure with the name Ruey was Ruaidhrí Ó Domhnaill, who lived in the 15th century and was a prominent Irish lord and leader of the O'Donnell dynasty. He is known for his involvement in the Irish Renaissance, a period of cultural and intellectual revival in Ireland.
In the 16th century, there was a Scottish poet and historian named Ruaidhrí Dall Ó Muirí, who was renowned for his works in Scottish Gaelic literature. His poetry and historical writings provide valuable insights into the culture and traditions of Scotland during that time.
Moving into more modern times, one of the most famous individuals with the name Ruey was Ruaidhrí Ó Radhnaí, an Irish revolutionary and political activist who lived in the early 20th century. He played a significant role in the Irish Republican movement and was involved in various uprisings against British rule in Ireland.
While the name Ruey is relatively uncommon today, it continues to hold a special place in Irish and Scottish history, serving as a reminder of the rich cultural heritage and traditions of these ancient civilizations.
People
Ruey + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ruey as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ruey: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ruey?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 9 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ruey 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 38,083,815 US residents.
Is Ruey a common name?
We classify Ruey as "Very Rare". It ranks above 25.5% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 90 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ruey most popular?
The single biggest year for Ruey was 1925, when 7 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ruey is about 85 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Ruey in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 183 people with the name Ruey, or 0.06 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #40,598 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 Ruey 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 Ruey?
The 2020 Census sex table shows Ruey on both sides of the split. Of the 198 people counted with this name, 101 were male (51.0%) and 97 were female (49.0%). 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 Ruey?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Ruey is Asian/Pacific Islander at 47.0%. The next largest groups are White (41.5%) and Black (6.6%). 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 Ruey most often in the Census?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest reported group for people named Ruey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.0% (86 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 Ruey in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ruey a female name?
Yes, 88.9% of people registered as Ruey in the SSA data are female. 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 Ruey still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ruey 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 Ruey 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 called Ruey?
You can see how many Americans are named Ruey on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.