Cheney
- Gender
- Mostly girls
- Say it
- CHAY-nee
- Origin
- English
Cheney is a name of English origin, meaning “oak grove”. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Cheney mean?
English: English surname of Norman French origin, from Old French chesnai 'oak grove'
“oak grove”
Transferred use of an English surname of Norman French origin, from a word for an oak grove.
Is Cheney a girl's or a boy's name?
In recent years, Cheney has been given to girls and boys, mostly girls.
How popular is Cheney in the US?
No girls in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 2001, with 22 girls. It first appears in the records in 1976.
Half of all the girls named Cheney in the US since 1880 were born between 1991 and 2003, the years shaded on the chart below.
Cheney in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 5 | #16,756 |
| 2010 | 6 | #14,953 |
| 2009 | 0 | – |
| 2008 | 0 | – |
| 2007 | 5 | #17,630 |
| 2006 | 8 | #12,415 |
| 2005 | 12 | #8,878 |
| 2004 | 11 | #9,259 |
| 2003 | 9 | #10,420 |
| 2002 | 12 | #8,274 |
| 2001 | 22 | #5,169 |
| 2000 | 10 | #9,156 |
| 1999 | 0 | – |
| 1998 | 7 | #11,132 |
| 1997 | 9 | #9,012 |
| 1996 | 8 | #9,576 |
| 1995 | 6 | #11,778 |
| 1994 | 6 | #11,771 |
| 1993 | 13 | #6,615 |
| 1992 | 6 | #11,730 |
| 1991 | 8 | #9,328 |
| 1990 | 8 | #9,241 |
| 1989 | 6 | #10,841 |
| 1988 | 0 | – |
| 1987 | 6 | #9,820 |
| 1986 | 6 | #9,540 |
| 1985 | 0 | – |
| 1984 | 0 | – |
| 1983 | 0 | – |
| 1982 | 0 | – |
| 1981 | 5 | #10,409 |
| 1980 | 0 | – |
| 1979 | 8 | #7,311 |
| 1978 | 0 | – |
| 1977 | 0 | – |
| 1976 | 7 | #7,294 |
Names related to Cheney
Cheyenne Cheyanne Chenoa Chen Chyenne Cheyene Cheyenna Cheyne
More English names
Lily Evelyn Hudson Ivy Harper Grace Violet Willow Daisy Poppy Riley Oakley Mason Cooper Ruby Hallie
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Cheney: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/cheney, updated 20 October 2026.