Shai is a distinctive choice, ranked #1798 in 2025. Your child is likely to be the only Shai in their class.
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UK Rank 2025
#1798
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About the Name Shai
Shai has seen a notable decline in recent years, dropping 1993 places in five years. It was most popular in 1997 at #1126 — parents choosing it today are making a deliberately counter-trend decision. The name has been a consistent presence in UK records since 1996.
Shai is uncommon in the UK, so your child is very likely to be the only Shai in their class.
⭐ Famous People Named Shai
Shai Hope — Shai Diego Hope is a Barbadian cricketer, who plays as a wicketkeeper-batsman for the West Indies cricket team.
Shai Klapper — Shai Klapper is an Israeli aluf who has served as commander of the Home Front Command of the Israel Defense Forces since 2025.
Isaac Shai — Isaac Shai is a South African former footballer who played at both professional and international levels as a midfielder.
Biographical summaries are shortened from Wikipedia and are used under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence; those summaries remain available under that same licence.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about the name Shai
Unlikely. With around 14 UK babies named Shai per year, your child will almost certainly be the only Shai in their class, and possibly the only one in the whole school.
Shai has been fairly steady, ranked #1,798 in 2025 against #1,723 in 2020. Its best recorded position was #1,110 in 1998.
Shai is a distinctive choice sitting outside the mainstream UK top names. Parents choosing less common names often find their children appreciate the individuality as they grow up, rarely needing to add an initial to distinguish themselves.
Notable people named Shai include: Shai Hope, Shai Klapper and Isaac Shai. Short summaries for each appear below.
Shai does not appear in the US top 1,000 baby names, making it a distinctively British choice — your child is unlikely to encounter American Shais in the wild.
14
UK babies named Shai (2025)
< 1
Expected classmates with this name (class of 28)
< 1
In a school of 600
↓ 75 places
Rank change (last 5 years)
🏫 Who else is in the room?
In a typical UK class of 28, highlighted children share the name Shai
Almost certainly the only Shai in the class
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UK Popularity (1996–2025)
Rank and birth count · ONS official data
No US data available for this name
✨ Similar names to Shai
Names with a similar style — each with their own classroom story
Shai Davidai is an Israeli former assistant professor of business at Columbia Business School known for his outspoken advocacy for Israel and against the Columbia University pro-Palestinian campus protests and occupations during the Gaza war.