# Harley (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/harley/  
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 | boys and girls |
| Origin | English |
| Meaning | “rock”, “hare”, “wood”, “clearing”, “lea” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈhɑɹli/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Hurley |
| US babies named this | 71,872 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 40,705 / 31,167 (43% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 25,857, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

From Old English hær (“rock”) or hara (“hare”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”). Equivalent to hare + -ley (“lea”).

## What it means

Harley is grouped under forest and mountain.

## 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 | 716 | 436 |
| 2012 | 760 | 413 |
| 2013 | 878 | 359 |
| 2014 | 949 | 350 |
| 2015 | 1,136 | 278 |
| 2016 | 1,433 | 224 |
| 2017 | 1,532 | 202 |
| 2018 | 1,415 | 223 |
| 2019 | 1,221 | 273 |
| 2020 | 1,115 | 286 |
| 2021 | 1,046 | 305 |
| 2022 | 981 | 329 |
| 2023 | 891 | 345 |
| 2024 | 797 | 396 |
| 2025 | 748 | 418 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 370 | 633 |
| 2012 | 384 | 632 |
| 2013 | 403 | 616 |
| 2014 | 411 | 640 |
| 2015 | 395 | 654 |
| 2016 | 379 | 674 |
| 2017 | 401 | 647 |
| 2018 | 300 | 775 |
| 2019 | 286 | 804 |
| 2020 | 300 | 781 |
| 2021 | 247 | 920 |
| 2022 | 253 | 916 |
| 2023 | 221 | 998 |
| 2024 | 219 | 1,020 |
| 2025 | 199 | 1,083 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 59 | 665 |
| 2012 | 82 | 519 |
| 2013 | 96 | 437 |
| 2014 | 96 | 458 |
| 2015 | 107 | 414 |
| 2016 | 169 | 293 |
| 2017 | 279 | 191 |
| 2018 | 211 | 238 |
| 2019 | 232 | 212 |
| 2020 | 239 | 206 |
| 2021 | 191 | 252 |
| 2022 | 191 | 250 |
| 2023 | 117 | 360 |
| 2024 | 102 | 418 |
| 2025 | 91 | 439 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 1,308 | 55 |
| 2012 | 1,543 | 46 |
| 2013 | 1,275 | 49 |
| 2014 | 1,303 | 45 |
| 2015 | 1,175 | 52 |
| 2016 | 1,083 | 55 |
| 2017 | 1,246 | 53 |
| 2018 | 1,011 | 64 |
| 2019 | 771 | 77 |
| 2020 | 594 | 97 |
| 2021 | 501 | 115 |
| 2022 | 465 | 119 |
| 2023 | 396 | 136 |
| 2024 | 356 | 148 |
| 2025 | 366 | 145 |

## People named Harley

- Harley Jane Kozak, American actress and writer
- Harley Quinn Smith, American actress and musician
- Harley Race, American professional wrestler, promoter and trainer (1943–2019)
- Harley Earl, American designer (1893-1969)
- Harley Granville-Barker, British actor and playwright (1877–1946)
- Harley Cokeliss, director (born 1945)
- Harley Rouda, American politician
- Harley Cross, American actor
- Harley M. Kilgore, American politician (1893-1956)
- Harley Bird, British actress
- Harley Flanagan, American musician
- Harley Jessup, American production designer and visual effects artist

## 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.