Fun Facts About the Name Zoey
- A newer favorite: Zoey first entered the U.S. top 100 in 2008 and stayed there through 2025 - a run of 18 consecutive years.
- More than 115 thousand babies named Zoey: U.S. records list 115,513 babies given the name Zoey from 1880 through 2025. Even 230 boys received the name Zoey - about 1 boy for every 501 girls.
What Does the Name Zoey Mean?
Zoey is a modern English spelling of the name Zoe, which comes from the Greek noun zōē (ζωή), meaning "life." The same word appears throughout the Greek New Testament, where it can refer to ordinary physical life or, in phrases such as zōē aiōnios, to eternal life.
In the Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible, the translators used Zōē for Eve's name in Genesis 3:20, because the Hebrew name was understood to be linked with living. That is a translation choice, not the origin of the name. When Greek-speaking Christians adopted the word as a personal name, the meaning stayed simply "life."
Zoey and Zoe are the same name. The y ending is an English respelling that makes the two-syllable pronunciation clear to readers who do not know the Greek form; the spelling Zoë, with a diaeresis, is another way English writers have marked the same pronunciation.
Zoey Name History & Origins
The name took hold in the Greek-speaking eastern Mediterranean, where it belonged to several early Christian saints. One of them, Zoe of Rome, is remembered as a martyr of the early fourth century and commemorated on July 5. In the Byzantine Empire the name was borne by two empresses: Zoe Karbonopsina, the fourth wife of Emperor Leo VI and mother of Constantine VII, and Zoe Porphyrogenita, who held imperial power from 1028 to 1050. Through Byzantine and later Greek Orthodox tradition, the name remained in use in Greece and in Greek communities abroad.
In western Europe it was less common but not unknown, appearing in Italian and in French as Zoé. English use of Zoe grew during the nineteenth century, often written with the diaeresis as Zoë. The spelling Zoey is a later English variant that follows the sound pattern of names ending in -ey; it shares the same origin as Zoe rather than having a separate one.
How Popular is the Name Zoey?
Zoey recorded its highest annual U.S. birth count in 2012. Zoey entered the top 100 U.S. girl names in 2008.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #69 | 3,427 | 0.2132% |
| 2024 | #59 | 3,600 | 0.2232% |
| 2023 | #51 | 4,054 | 0.2530% |
| 2022 | #45 | 4,512 | 0.2753% |
| 2021 | #38 | 5,215 | 0.3180% |
| 2020 | #32 | 5,384 | 0.3333% |
| 2019 | #31 | 5,685 | 0.3389% |
| 2018 | #29 | 5,943 | 0.3495% |
| 2017 | #28 | 6,074 | 0.3519% |
| 2016 | #26 | 6,478 | 0.3657% |
| 2015 | #23 | 6,975 | 0.3908% |
| 2014 | #22 | 7,440 | 0.4166% |
| 2013 | #24 | 7,256 | 0.4136% |
| 2012 | #20 | 7,481 | 0.4249% |
| 2011 | #28 | 6,407 | 0.3643% |
| 2010 | #47 | 5,219 | 0.2936% |
| 2009 | #75 | 3,995 | 0.2175% |
| 2008 | #98 | 3,449 | 0.1824% |
| 2007 | #112 | 3,044 | 0.1583% |
| 2006 | #119 | 2,858 | 0.1503% |
| 2005 | #152 | 2,275 | 0.1231% |
| 2004 | #208 | 1,622 | 0.0883% |
| 2003 | #221 | 1,469 | 0.0804% |
| 2002 | #268 | 1,182 | 0.0658% |
| 2001 | #363 | 822 | 0.0457% |
| 2000 | #410 | 691 | 0.0381% |
| 1999 | #468 | 563 | 0.0317% |
| 1998 | #528 | 478 | 0.0271% |
| 1997 | #573 | 407 | 0.0234% |
| 1996 | #656 | 339 | 0.0193% |
| 1995 | #875 | 219 | 0.0125% |
| 1994 | #1,258 | 137 | 0.0077% |
| 1993 | #1,253 | 138 | 0.0076% |
| 1992 | #1,206 | 145 | 0.0079% |
| 1991 | #1,598 | 96 | 0.0051% |
| 1990 | #3,362 | 33 | 0.0017% |
| 1989 | #5,285 | 17 | 0.0009% |
| 1988 | #5,065 | 17 | 0.0010% |
| 1987 | #5,611 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 1986 | #6,611 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1985 | #9,302 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1984 | #5,898 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1983 | #5,823 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 1979 | #8,059 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1978 | #9,747 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1977 | #7,564 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1976 | #5,214 | 12 | 0.0008% |
| 1975 | #7,171 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1974 | #4,719 | 13 | 0.0009% |
| 1973 | #6,665 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 1971 | #8,320 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 1970 | #7,993 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1967 | #6,800 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #11,998 | 6 | 0.0004% |
| 2023 | #14,191 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2019 | #12,137 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2018 | #8,811 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2017 | #9,686 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2015 | #6,321 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2014 | #7,556 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2013 | #8,781 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2012 | #8,857 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2011 | #7,005 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2010 | #9,683 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2009 | #10,984 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2008 | #9,866 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2007 | #7,586 | 11 | 0.0005% |
| 2006 | #5,302 | 17 | 0.0008% |
| 2005 | #6,221 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2004 | #6,520 | 12 | 0.0006% |
| 2003 | #10,891 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2002 | #7,638 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 2001 | #12,298 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2000 | #10,345 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 1998 | #5,839 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 1997 | #8,107 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 1994 | #10,241 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1993 | #6,225 | 9 | 0.0005% |
| 1991 | #7,265 | 7 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Explore Name Lists Featuring Zoey
Carl appears in several baby name collections based on U.S. popularity records, naming trends, and name characteristics. Explore these lists to discover other names with similar histories, styles, or features.
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How the Name Zoey Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You have aspiration and inspiration, hope and guidance. Since you are intuitive and perceptive and you understand human nature. You have the power to achieve. Diplomacy and discretion make you a good mediator. You are inspired, introspective, and have a good understanding of the human heart. You can have the ability to commercialize your artistic talents successfully. You are often a mystery to others and to yourself. You are always reaching for something higher, without exactly knowing what that "higher" is. You are frank, methodical and believe in law, system and order.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Zoey's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Zoey's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.