Yee

♂ Boy

How to Pronounce Yee

Pronounced YEE /jiː/Medium

Meaning: Yee is the Cantonese romanization of several distinct Chinese surnames, most commonly Yu (余, 'abundance, surplus') or Yip/Ye (葉, 'leaf'); in the SSA first-name data it most likely reflects a Chinese family surname used or misfiled as a given name, or a surname carried forward as a middle-to-first name in Chinese-American families.Low

In 30 seconds: Yee is the Cantonese romanization of a Chinese surname, most often meaning 'abundance' or 'leaf.' It appears across a long span in United States records, peaking around 1989 at about 18 boys a year (said YEE).

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Origin LowChinese

MeaningYee is the Cantonese romanization of several distinct Chinese surnames, most commonly Yu (余, 'abundance, surplus') or Yip/Ye (葉, 'leaf'); in the SSA first-name data it most likely reflects a Chinese family surname used or misfiled as a given name, or a surname carried forward as a middle-to-first name in Chinese-American families.

U.S. rank (2000)#7392 ↗ Rising

2000 U.S. births9 boys (0.00% of U.S. boys)

Peak year1989

Total births (all-time)≈ 281

Popularity in the U.S. · SSA data

U.S. births per year (Social Security Administration, 1880–present). Pink marker = peak year.

SSA data updated May 2026. How we source & verify this data.

History & Origin

Yee is best understood as a Cantonese-romanized Chinese surname, most often either 余 ('abundance, surplus') or 葉 ('leaf'), both common family names among Cantonese-speaking communities, including many early Chinese immigrants to the United States. Its appearance as a first name in the SSA data most likely reflects a family surname carried into the given-name slot, a known pattern in historical immigration records.

The name spans an unusually long and thin period in the SSA data, from 1880 to 2000, tracking the long history of Chinese immigration to America, and it peaked modestly at about 18 boys a year in 1989. Because Yee functions primarily as a surname, its use as a first name has always stayed sparse and scattered rather than following one clean trend.

Did you know? Yee represents at least two entirely different Chinese surnames once they're romanized into English, 余 ('abundance') and 葉 ('leaf'), a good reminder that Cantonese romanizations can flatten distinct characters into the same English spelling.

Overall data confidence 42%

References - Yee — Cantonese romanization of Chinese surnames Yu (abundance) / Ye (leaf); surname-as-first-name pattern

Variations

YuYipYe

Nicknames

Yee

Famous Bearers

Famous bearers coming soon.

If you like Yee…

Wei— a like short one-syllable Chinese given name

Chen— another Chinese surname sometimes used as a first name

Lee— a like brief Chinese/Korean surname-as-first-name

Yi— shares Yee's Chinese roots

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Frequently Asked

What does the name Yee mean?

It is the Cantonese romanization of a Chinese surname, most often meaning 'abundance' or 'leaf' depending on the original character.

How do you pronounce Yee?

It is said YEE /jiː/, one syllable, rhyming with 'see.'

Is Yee a boy or girl name?

Yee is used as a boy's name.

How popular is Yee?

It was always rare as a first name, given to about 18 boys a year at its late-1980s peak, spread thinly across a very long span of records.