FastNamesRiley
Irish, English and Celtic name meaning "Dual-origin name: an Anglicized form of Irish Ó Raghallaigh ('valiant' or 'courageous'), or an English habitational name from ryge ('rye') and lēah ('clearing').". Ranked 48th for girls in 2025.
Meaning and origin of Riley
Dual-origin name: an Anglicized form of Irish Ó Raghallaigh ('valiant' or 'courageous'), or an English habitational name from ryge ('rye') and lēah ('clearing').
Linguistically, Riley is classified under Irish, English and Celtic naming traditions. It is typically pronounced "RYE-lee".
Popularity and ranking
In official US Social Security birth records from 1880 through 2025, Riley has been given to a total of 141,960 girls. It has also been given to 105,025 boys.
Peak year: Riley reached its highest relative share among girls in 2016, when 7,159 babies received the name (4,040 per million births).
All-time best rank: 22nd place, first achieved in 2016.
Recent standing (2025): Ranked 48th with 4,441 births. Ten years earlier in 2015, it ranked 35th (down 13 spots).
Busiest decade: More girls were named Riley in the 2010s than in any other decade (56,150 births).
| Decade | Recorded births |
|---|---|
| 1920s | 11 |
| 1930s | 11 |
| 1940s | 21 |
| 1950s | 18 |
| 1960s | 11 |
| 1970s | 72 |
| 1980s | 680 |
| 1990s | 10,234 |
| 2000s | 45,533 |
| 2010s | 56,150 |
| 2020s | 29,219 |
Source: Social Security Administration, national baby name data, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
Where Riley is most common in the US
Accounting for when Riley was in fashion nationally, it has been most heavily concentrated in the following states (measured against the expected rate from each state's births):
- Delaware: 2.1 times the national rate (547 births since 1910).
- Vermont: 1.9 times the national rate (245 births since 1910).
- New Hampshire: 1.9 times the national rate (735 births since 1910).
- Rhode Island: 1.8 times the national rate (535 births since 1910).
- Wyoming: 1.7 times the national rate (194 births since 1910).
Source: Social Security Administration, baby names by state, data through 2025. Names given to fewer than five babies of one sex in a state in a year aren't published, so totals are a little lower than actual births.
How many people have the name Riley?
About 141,000 living American girls and women share the name Riley. Additionally, an estimated 96,500 living American boys and men share the name.
The median age of an American named Riley is 14 years old.
Estimated from Social Security Administration records (1880–2025) and official SSA cohort mortality tables.
History of the name Riley
Riley represents two rich onomastic traditions from Britain and Ireland. In Ireland, it is primarily derived from the distinguished Gaelic patronymic Ó Raghallaigh (O'Reilly), rooted in the personal name Raghallach, meaning 'valiant', 'courageous', or 'active in combat'. The O'Reillys were formidable princes of East Brefny (modern County Cavan) throughout the medieval era.
In England, Riley developed independently as a habitational and topographic surname rooted in Old English ryge ('rye', the cereal grain) and lēah ('clearing', 'glade', or 'meadow'). Localities named Riley or Ryley in Lancashire and Devon marked ancient agricultural settlements nestled within cultivated fields of rye grain.
In late twentieth- and twenty-first-century United States vital statistics, Riley emerged as one of the quintessential modern unisex favorites. Bestowed initially on boys before experiencing a spectacular surge for girls starting in the 1990s, Riley entered the national top forty for girls in 2008 and the top thirty in 2016 with over 8,000 newborn girls per year, while also retaining steady top-200 popularity for boys.
Notable people named Riley
- Riley Keough (1989–), American actress and filmmaker
- Riley Green (1988–), American country music singer-songwriter
- Riley Ridley (1996–), American professional football player
- Riley Smith (1978–), American actor and musician
Variants and related names
Spelling variants
Diminutives and nicknames
Related names
Sources and references
- Patrick Hanks, Kate Hardcastle, Flavia Hodges. A Dictionary of First Names (2006), p. 230.
- P. H. Reaney, R. M. Wilson. A Dictionary of English Surnames (1997), p. 378.
- Douglas Harper. Online Etymology Dictionary. Reference link.