Sage
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Meaning
wise one; herb
The story
Sage is two Latin words that collided in English and never separated. The wise one comes from sapius, to taste and so to discern; the herb comes from salvia, from salvus, healthy, because the plant was medicine before it was seasoning. They are unrelated roots that arrived at the same four letters, so a family choosing Sage is choosing both whether they mean to or not. It is one of the more evenly shared names in our records, about 30,500 girls to 15,800 boys, which is unusual: most names that look unisex are quietly lopsided. The curve is a steady climb rather than a spike. About 660 babies in the 1970s, 5,600 in the 1990s, 10,700 in the 2000s, and more than 15,000 so far this decade. Our own data files it among gentle names.
How popular is Sage around the world?
In the United States, 15,280 babies were named Sage between 2020 and 2025. In New Zealand, 30 girls named Sage were registered in 2025.
Sage is on the official records of the United States, New Zealand, Canada, South Australia, England and Wales, Ireland, Scotland and Poland.
United States
1 in 1,400
In the United States, 15,280 babies were named Sage between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Sage peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
New Zealand
1 in 1,300
In New Zealand, 30 girls named Sage were registered in 2025.
In New Zealand, 15 boys named Sage were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Canada
1 in 1,900
In Canada, 132 girls named Sage were born in 2024, the 221st most common name among girls that year.
In Canada, 65 boys named Sage were born in 2024, the 468th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
South Australia
1 in 3,7002017
In South Australia, 3 boys were registered as Sage in 2017.
In South Australia, 2 girls were registered as Sage in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
England and Wales
1 in 6,000
In England and Wales, 64 girls named Sage were born in 2025, the 610th most common name among girls that year.
In England and Wales, 33 boys named Sage were born in 2025, the 934th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Ireland
1 in 11,000
In Ireland, 5 girls named Sage were born in 2025, the 608th most common name among girls that year.
The count never rose above 8 in a year, too few to chart.
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Scotland
1 in 15,000
In Scotland, 3 girls named Sage were registered in 2024, the 790th most common name among girls that year.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
Poland
1 in 120,000
In Poland, 2 girls named Sage were born in 2025, the 706th most common name among girls that year.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Austria record for 1984 to 2025: Statistik Austria publishes every first name down to a single birth, so this name was not given there in those years (before 2010 the record covers babies with Austrian citizenship only). Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Sage
Most people given the name Sage in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Sage · Gentle names · Short names · Nickname-proof names · Gender-neutral names
The Sage deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Sage truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Sage fits with your family’s names and surname.
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