girl's name
Wendy
WEN-dee (English)
- Origin English
- Gender Girl
- Syllables 2
- Letters 5
- Popularity Uncommon
- Births on record 281,961
Scotland
#589
2024 births
Wendy is usually credited to J. M. Barrie's Peter Pan of 1904, and birth records support it: the name barely exists before then, and it is on record only from 1918. It peaked in 1967.
- Wendy is a name of English origin.
- Peaked in 1967, when 11,259 babies were given the name.
- It has been falling over the past decade.
- Today about 1 in 20,093 babies in the United States is given this name.
- First appears in US birth records in 1918.
- 2 syllables, with the stress on syllable 1.
Wendy Over Time
Births per decade in the United States, 1910s to 2020s. The striped bar is the 2020s, which so far covers 2020 to 2025.
Show the numbers
| Decade | Births |
|---|---|
| 1910s | 5 |
| 1920s | 45 |
| 1930s | 583 |
| 1940s | 8,428 |
| 1950s | 42,786 |
| 1960s | 89,212 |
| 1970s | 74,481 |
| 1980s | 22,426 |
| 1990s | 11,172 |
| 2000s | 9,612 |
| 2010s | 3,376 |
| 2020s (to 2025) | 1,150 |
What Wendy Means
Wendy has no inherited meaning. Barrie built it from a child's nickname for him, so any reading given for it — friend, or the Welsh gwen, white — is applied after the fact rather than derived.
Where Wendy Comes From
Wendy was effectively made by J. M. Barrie. Margaret Henley, the small daughter of his friend W. E. Henley, called him her fwendy-wendy, unable to say friend, and Barrie took the sound for Wendy Darling in Peter Pan in 1904. Isolated earlier uses exist as a pet form of Gwendolyn, but the name's life as a name begins with the play. Our own records support the attribution rather than merely repeating it: they carry Wendy from 1918, fourteen years after the play and with nothing before, which is the pattern of a genuine literary coinage rather than a name a book merely popularized.
Wendy in Use
Wendy peaked in the United States in 1967, when 11,259 babies were registered, and is falling. It now ranks 589th in Scotland on 5 births, 616th in France on 70, 1,345th in the United States on 165 and 1,859th in England and Wales, across 281,961 lifetime births in five markets. That records begin in 1918 and not before is what separates it from Janice, where the novel came after the name.
How Popular Is Wendy?
In 2025, Wendy was given to 165 babies in the United States. It is used consistently but remains uncommon.
Where Wendy Is Used
US figures omit any name given to fewer than five babies in a year, so the rarest names are absent from the source rather than absent from use. Data & sources.
Names That Peaked Alongside Wendy
These names rose and fell in the same era, which is why they tend to sound like they belong together.
Parents Who Like Wendy Also Like
Names whose popularity has risen and fallen in step with Wendy over the last century — the same taste, a different name.
How to Say Wendy
- English WEN-dee /ˈwɛn.di/
Wendy in Other Languages
The same name as it is spelled elsewhere — not shortenings, and not different names that merely sound alike. Each one has its own record here.
Sibling Names for Wendy
Names from the same era that do not rhyme or share an initial with Wendy — the two things that make a sibling set grate.
Common Questions About Wendy
What does the name Wendy mean?
Nothing inherited. Barrie built it from a child's attempt to say friend, so any meaning given is applied after the fact.
Did Peter Pan invent the name Wendy?
Effectively yes, and birth records support it — they carry the name only from 1918, with nothing before the 1904 play.
Is Wendy short for Gwendolyn?
It is used that way, and a few isolated earlier uses exist, but the modern name comes from Barrie.
How popular is Wendy?
1,345th in the United States, down from a 1967 peak of 11,259 births.
Is Wendy a girl's or a boy's name?
Wendy is given almost entirely to girls in birth records.
How many syllables are in Wendy?
Wendy has 2 syllables.
Is Wendy a good name?
That is not something records can settle, but they can tell you what you would be choosing. Wendy currently ranks #589 in the United States. It has been falling over the past decade. Everything else — how it sounds with your surname, who it reminds you of — is yours.