Hei
- Gender
- Mostly boys
- Say it
- HAY
- Origin
- Chinese
- UK rank, 2025
- #4,301 for boys
Hei is a name of Chinese origin. In 2025 it ranked 4,301st for boys in the UK (4 babies).
Where does Hei come from?
Chinese: Cantonese spelling; meaning depends on the character used
Is Hei a girl's or a boy's name?
In recent years, Hei has been given to girls and boys, mostly boys. In 2025, it was given to 4 girls and 4 boys in the UK.
How popular is Hei in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- 4,301st among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 4 about 1 in 75,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Rising fast up 333% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 4 boys in the UK were named Hei, making it the 4,301st most popular name for boys. Its busiest year was 2024, with 5 boys. 4 girls were also named Hei in 2025 (4,935th for girls).
Among boys in 2025, it was 4,212th in England and Wales.
Hei in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 4 | #4,301 |
| 2024 | 5 | #3,772 |
| 2023 | 4 | #4,335 |
| 2022 | 0 | – |
| 2021 | 0 | – |
| 2020 | 0 | – |
| 2019 | 3 | #4,913 |
| 2018 | 0 | – |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 0 | – |
| 2015 | 0 | – |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 1 | #6,198 |
Names like Hei
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Koa, Kairo, Myles, Ruairi, Yug, Yusuf, Loki, Rumi, Tai, Hudson, Levi, Minh
More Chinese names
Lian, Jia, Mei, Tian, Jun, Mulan, Yi, Tao, San, Jian, Han, Mian, Bao, Xia, Lin, Yichen
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland) and Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Hei: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/hei, updated 20 October 2026.