Hayley

Where Hayley comes from

Localities in England, from Old English hēg (“hay”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”). Equivalent to hay + -ley (“lea”).
— Wiktionary's entry for Hayley
  • From a surname
  • 2 syllables
  • Vowel-ended
Along the way
  1. 1960
    First appearance
    #4,437 among girls, 9 babies — the first year at least five got the name.
  2. 1988
    Hayley Williams born
    American singer
  3. 1991
    Hayley Kiyoko born
    American actress and singer
  4. 1996
    Peak, #120
    2,577 babies named Hayley — more than any year before or since.
  5. 2005
    The fade
    The first year with half the peak's births — down to #265.
In the dictionary
  • A unisex given name transferred from the surname.
  • A male given name transferred from the surname, of rare usage.
  • A female given name transferred from the surname, popular in the UK in the 1970s and the 1980s.
Namesakes
  • Hayley Williams · American singer, born 1988
  • Hayley Kiyoko · American actress and singer, born 1991
  • Hayley Westenra · New Zealand singer, born 1987
  • Hayley Mills · British actress, born 1946
  • Hayley Wickenheiser · Canadian ice hockey and softball player, born 1978

Sources: the origin note and dictionary entry are quoted from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); the namesakes come from Wikidata (CC0); the milestones are worked out from the SSA record.