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Boy · English surname
Wiley
Say it: WY-lee
Meaning
From an English surname, from places in Wiltshire or from 'willow clearing'; uncertain.
Uncertainseveral explanations, none settled.
Used in the American South in the late 1800s.
Its wave through time
Fading since the 1880s
In the United States
- 17,745 babies given this name since 1880
- At its height in 1882, about 1 in 1,200 boys
- 182 babies in 2020
Through the ages
Used by
Famous bearers
- Wiley Post, American aviator
Names worth a look
Where this comes from
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
- National census records of the 19th and 20th centuries
- United States Social Security birth records, 1880 to today source
Meanings and histories are compiled from the study of names and their languages and checked by a second review.
Meanings and histories are drawn from the study of names and their languages, each with a confidence rating; popularity figures come from official birth records. Name histories are a living field: if you know of a correction, we would be glad to hear it.