# Ashley (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/ashley/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. US counts from the Social Security Administration; England and Wales counts from the Office for National Statistics; meaning and etymology from Wiktionary. Data updated 2026-11-11.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Usually given to | girls |
| Origin | English |
| Meaning | “ash tree”, “wood”, “clearing” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈæʃli/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Ashlee, Ashleigh, Ashlie, Ashly |
| US babies named this | 875,722 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 15,865 / 859,857 (98% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 15,186, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Old English *Æsċlēah, composed of æsċ (“ash tree”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”). Equivalent to Ash + -ley.

## What it means

Ashley is grouped under forest.

## Popularity

The last 15 years of each series. A year is missing when too few babies were given the name for the agency to publish it: five in the US, three in England and Wales.

### United States, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 5,403 | 42 |
| 2012 | 4,701 | 50 |
| 2013 | 3,943 | 67 |
| 2014 | 3,560 | 87 |
| 2015 | 3,429 | 86 |
| 2016 | 3,045 | 101 |
| 2017 | 2,528 | 122 |
| 2018 | 2,280 | 130 |
| 2019 | 2,031 | 137 |
| 2020 | 1,808 | 153 |
| 2021 | 1,700 | 172 |
| 2022 | 1,865 | 154 |
| 2023 | 2,184 | 126 |
| 2024 | 2,240 | 124 |
| 2025 | 1,829 | 164 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 37 | 3,052 |
| 2012 | 17 | 5,270 |
| 2013 | 38 | 2,961 |
| 2014 | 40 | 2,893 |
| 2015 | 26 | 3,992 |
| 2016 | 34 | 3,300 |
| 2017 | 32 | 3,445 |
| 2018 | 34 | 3,305 |
| 2019 | 24 | 4,235 |
| 2020 | 29 | 3,656 |
| 2021 | 31 | 3,588 |
| 2022 | 29 | 3,778 |
| 2023 | 29 | 3,806 |
| 2024 | 28 | 3,899 |
| 2025 | 27 | 3,957 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 55 | 702 |
| 2012 | 70 | 600 |
| 2013 | 80 | 519 |
| 2014 | 56 | 699 |
| 2015 | 56 | 708 |
| 2016 | 35 | 1,013 |
| 2017 | 49 | 797 |
| 2018 | 42 | 886 |
| 2019 | 32 | 1,063 |
| 2020 | 49 | 749 |
| 2021 | 37 | 936 |
| 2022 | 50 | 729 |
| 2023 | 37 | 941 |
| 2024 | 23 | 1,406 |
| 2025 | 25 | 1,271 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 261 | 201 |
| 2012 | 248 | 216 |
| 2013 | 154 | 288 |
| 2014 | 155 | 295 |
| 2015 | 120 | 368 |
| 2016 | 146 | 322 |
| 2017 | 106 | 414 |
| 2018 | 95 | 436 |
| 2019 | 83 | 481 |
| 2020 | 66 | 559 |
| 2021 | 74 | 526 |
| 2022 | 48 | 699 |
| 2023 | 49 | 704 |
| 2024 | 36 | 880 |
| 2025 | 49 | 716 |

## In other languages

- Bulgarian: Ашли
- Chinese: 阿什利
- Japanese: アシュリー
- Russian: Э́шли

## People named Ashley

- Ashley Tisdale, American actress and singer-songwriter (born 1985)
- Ashley Cole, English association football player (born 1980)
- Ashley Young, English association football player (born 1985)
- Ashley Judd, American actress
- Ashley Greene, American actress
- Ashley Benson, American actress
- Ashley Olsen, American businesswoman, fashion designer and actress (born 1986)
- Ashley Graham, American model
- Ashley Johnson, American actress
- Ashley Biden, American social worker and fashion designer (born 1981)
- Ashley Barnes, English footballer
- Ashley Roberts, American singer, dancer and television personality

## How to read these numbers

A count is babies registered with that name in that year, not people alive now, so a name common a century ago can have a large total and few recent births.