How common is the surname Henley?

20,934 people in the United States had the surname Henley in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 14,749 Americans. It ranked 1,717th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Henley?

Don Henley, American rock musician, followed by Barry Shabaka Henley.

Where is the surname Henley most common?

Wikidata records people named Henley in the United States and the United Kingdom.

Is the surname Henley getting more or less common?

More common. 20,276 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 20,934 in 2010, up 3.2%.

The surname Henley

An English surname, carried by 20,934 people in the United States.

2 syllables Soundex H540

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Henley is more common than 98.9% of them.

Origin

English origin

From Old English hēan, weak dative case of hēah (“high”), + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Compare Hanley, which shares the same etymology.

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 20,934 people named Henley in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 14,749 Americans. That is up 3.2% since 2000, when the Census counted 20,276.

#1,717

rank among US surnames

20,934

people in 2010

7.1

per 100,000 Americans

+3.2%

change since 2000 (was #1,619)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,708	Hurt	21,037	14,676
#1,709	Ash	21,030	14,681
#1,710	Hagan	21,017	14,690
#1,711	Brito	21,007	14,697
#1,712	Lanier	20,997	14,704
#1,713	Zarate	20,992	14,708
#1,714	Major	20,977	14,718

Who is named Henley

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

70% of people named Henley identified as white (not Hispanic), 24% as Black (not Hispanic) and 3.0% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 70%
Black (not Hispanic) 24%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.0%
Two or more races 1.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.6%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.4%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Henleys

9 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Don Henley
American rock musician, born 1947
Barry Shabaka Henley
American actor (born 1954)
Hobart Henley
American actor and film director (1887-1964)
Beth Henley
American writer and actor b. 1952
Elmer Wayne Henley
American serial killer, Dean Corll's accomplice, born 1956
Ron Henley
American chess player, born 1956
Stormi Henley
Beauty pageant contestant, model, and singer, born 1990
D. H. Peligro
American punk rock musician (1959–2022)
Rosalind Pitt-Rivers
British biochemist (1907–1990)

Notable Henleys come mostly from the United States (8) and the United Kingdom (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Henley

Henley has the Soundex code H540, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code H540.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Henley come from?: From Old English hēan, weak dative case of hēah (“high”), + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Compare Hanley, which shares the same etymology.
How common is the surname Henley?: 20,934 people in the United States had the surname Henley in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 14,749 Americans. It ranked 1,717th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Henley?: In the 2010 Census, 70% of people named Henley identified as white (not Hispanic), and 24% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Henley?: Don Henley, American rock musician, followed by Barry Shabaka Henley.
Where is the surname Henley most common?: Wikidata records people named Henley in the United States and the United Kingdom.
Is the surname Henley getting more or less common?: More common. 20,276 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 20,934 in 2010, up 3.2%.