When was the name Yao most popular?

Yao has stayed rare in US Social Security records since 1890, with no peak decade to name.

What are names similar to Yao?

Names similar to Yao in origin and style include Chao, Tao, Hao, Yang, Yong.

Yao

Q: What does the name Yao mean?

Yao is a boy name of Chinese origin: as a Chinese name, often 瑶, 'precious jade', echoing the legendary sage-king Yao; the spelling is also an Akan day name for Thursday-born boys.

boy name

Origin

Chinese

Syllables

Peak era

Rare

Today

▬ Steady

Meaning

as a Chinese name, often 瑶, 'precious jade', echoing the legendary sage-king Yao; the spelling is also an Akan day name for Thursday-born boys

Popularity, 1890–2024

1890srare in US records2020s

Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Yao has stayed rare in US records the whole time: no peak decade to name.

See popularity in Brazil

Popularity in Brazil

55 people · the #62,400 first name in Brazil · median age 39

Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022

Names that fit alongside Yao

Chao Tao Hao Yang Yong Hua

The Yao deep dive

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Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Yao 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 Yao fits with your family’s names and surname.

Both reports, explained →

Keep exploring

Chinese baby names · Short names

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