What Does the Name Shay Mean?

Shay is a unisex name of Hebrew / Irish (Gaelic) origin meaning “gift (Hebrew); hawk-like / stately (Irish).”

Updated June 2026

Name	Shay
Gender	unisex
Origin	Hebrew / Irish (Gaelic)
Meaning	gift (Hebrew); hawk-like / stately (Irish)
Variants	Shai, Shea, Shae, Shaye
Popularity	Used in Israel (Hebrew 'gift') and in the United States and Ireland; in the US it is roughly unisex, with the Shay/Shea spellings leaning female.

The meaning and origin of Shay

The name Shay means “gift (Hebrew); hawk-like / stately (Irish)” and has Hebrew / Irish (Gaelic) origins. Shay has two distinct roots: the Hebrew unisex name Shai (שי) meaning 'gift,' and the Irish surname Ó Séaghdha (anglicized Shea/O'Shea), meaning 'hawk-like' or 'stately.' It is also used as a short form of Irish names like Seamus.

Variants and related names

Shay is related to several other names you may recognize: Shai, Shea, Shae, Shaye. These share a common root or are spelling and language variants of the same name.

How popular is the name Shay?

Used in Israel (Hebrew 'gift') and in the United States and Ireland; in the US it is roughly unisex, with the Shay/Shea spellings leaning female.

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