# Presley (first name)

Source: https://namelineage.com/first-name/presley/  
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 | not recorded |
| Meaning | “priest”, “wood”, “clearing”, “lea”, “bush”, “place” |
| Pronunciation | /ˈpɹɛsli/, 2 syllables |
| Nicknames | none recorded |
| Variant spellings | Preslee, Presly, Preslea, Presleigh, Presli, Preslie |
| US babies named this | 36,723 since 1880 |
| Boys / girls in the US | 4,945 / 31,778 (87% girls) |
| Babies in England and Wales | 1,213, 1996 to 2025 |

## Etymology

The English surname is usually a variant of Priestley, from Old English prēost (“priest”) + lēah (“wood, clearing”). Equivalent to priest + -ley (“lea”). The place-name in Scotland may be from Pictish, equivalent to Welsh prys (“bush”) + Welsh lle (“place”).

## What it means

Presley 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 | 1,395 | 228 |
| 2012 | 1,536 | 203 |
| 2013 | 1,630 | 199 |
| 2014 | 1,743 | 190 |
| 2015 | 1,728 | 188 |
| 2016 | 1,606 | 201 |
| 2017 | 1,535 | 201 |
| 2018 | 1,497 | 206 |
| 2019 | 1,474 | 206 |
| 2020 | 1,359 | 213 |
| 2021 | 1,407 | 213 |
| 2022 | 1,314 | 232 |
| 2023 | 1,520 | 197 |
| 2024 | 1,374 | 225 |
| 2025 | 1,362 | 225 |

### United States, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 125 | 1,356 |
| 2012 | 134 | 1,298 |
| 2013 | 134 | 1,292 |
| 2014 | 143 | 1,253 |
| 2015 | 133 | 1,332 |
| 2016 | 122 | 1,431 |
| 2017 | 142 | 1,282 |
| 2018 | 122 | 1,440 |
| 2019 | 138 | 1,324 |
| 2020 | 105 | 1,567 |
| 2021 | 107 | 1,602 |
| 2022 | 132 | 1,407 |
| 2023 | 104 | 1,659 |
| 2024 | 95 | 1,750 |
| 2025 | 88 | 1,819 |

### England and Wales, girls

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 4 | 4,764 |
| 2012 | 5 | 4,171 |
| 2013 | 9 | 2,649 |
| 2014 | 7 | 3,160 |
| 2015 | 8 | 2,945 |
| 2016 | 9 | 2,757 |
| 2017 | 17 | 1,733 |
| 2018 | 11 | 2,340 |
| 2019 | 9 | 2,643 |
| 2020 | 15 | 1,846 |
| 2021 | 9 | 2,711 |
| 2022 | 15 | 1,849 |
| 2023 | 24 | 1,325 |
| 2024 | 33 | 1,036 |
| 2025 | 22 | 1,407 |

### England and Wales, boys

| Year | Babies | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2011 | 21 | 1,209 |
| 2012 | 34 | 885 |
| 2013 | 30 | 954 |
| 2014 | 32 | 916 |
| 2015 | 39 | 807 |
| 2016 | 42 | 774 |
| 2017 | 44 | 771 |
| 2018 | 45 | 741 |
| 2019 | 40 | 787 |
| 2020 | 54 | 640 |
| 2021 | 74 | 526 |
| 2022 | 60 | 610 |
| 2023 | 88 | 456 |
| 2024 | 82 | 484 |
| 2025 | 50 | 702 |

## People named Presley

- Presley Hart, American pornographic actress
- Presley O'Bannon, American politician (1776-1850)

## 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.