If you listen to American girls' names in 2024, one ending dominates everything else.
Riley. Everly. Paisley. Kinsley. Hailey. Hadley. Finley. Bentley. Hartley. Brinley. Oakley. Whitley.
The -ley/-ly ending has become the defining sound of American girls' names in the 2010s and 2020s the same way -er names define boys (see er-ending-names) and -on names defined boys a decade earlier. What started as a handful of surname crossovers has become a gravitational center that keeps pulling new names into its orbit.
The data
| Name | 1994 Rank | 2004 Rank | 2014 Rank | 2024 Rank | 2024 Babies |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hailey | #203 | #23 | #25 | #148 | 2,212 |
| Riley | #178 | #51 | #44 | #36 | 7,832 |
| Everly | — | #2,200 | #211 | #72 | 5,120 |
| Paisley | — | #1,400 | #127 | #73 | 5,088 |
| Kinsley | — | — | #341 | #95 | 4,046 |
| Finley | — | #1,100 | #346 | #135 | 2,836 |
| Hadley | #1,500 | #768 | #186 | #194 | 1,800 |
| Hartley | — | — | #889 | #347 | 1,002 |
| Oakley | — | — | #691 | #384 | 889 |
Hailey: the pioneer that peaked
Hailey — Girls #148, 2,212 babies in 2024.
Hailey (in all its spellings: Haley, Hayley, Halley) was the original -ley crossover for girls. It came from a Yorkshire place name meaning "hay clearing" and entered American naming as a surname crossover in the early 1990s.
| Year | Rank | Babies (all spellings) |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #203 | ~2,800 |
| 2000 | #34 | 9,280 |
| 2005 | #18 | 11,340 |
| 2010 | #25 | 10,890 |
| 2014 | #25 | 9,812 |
| 2020 | #70 | 5,126 |
| 2024 | #148 | 2,212 |
Hailey peaked around 2005-2010 with Hayley Wickenheiser (hockey), Haley Joel Osment, and general 2000s surname-name enthusiasm. It's now in clear decline — the same generational arc as Tyler, Jason, and other once-dominant names. By 2030 it will read like a name from the early 2000s.
Note: The spelling fractures add complexity. Haley, Hayley, Hailey, Halley, and Hayleigh all exist in the SSA data. The combined count is higher than any single spelling.
Riley: the survivor
Riley — Girls #36, 7,832 babies in 2024.
Riley is the most durable name in this set because it was never as sharply peaked as Hailey. It rose more gradually and is holding better.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | #178 | 1,519 |
| 2000 | #90 | 3,760 |
| 2004 | #51 | 5,808 |
| 2010 | #43 | 6,342 |
| 2014 | #44 | 6,906 |
| 2018 | #42 | 7,018 |
| 2022 | #34 | 7,960 |
| 2024 | #36 | 7,832 |
Riley is essentially flat near its all-time peak in 2024. The character Riley from Inside Out (2015 Pixar film) gave it a boost and a wholesome cultural association. Unlike Hailey, which reads as a 2000s name, Riley still reads as current. It's used for both boys and girls, though girls now account for the vast majority.
Everly: the fastest rise in the set
Everly — Girls #72, 5,120 babies in 2024.
Everly barely existed as a name before 2010. The Everly Brothers (1950s-60s rock duo) gave the name cultural familiarity, but it wasn't used as a given name for decades.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | — | — |
| 2004 | ~#2,200 | ~30 |
| 2010 | #760 | 312 |
| 2012 | #479 | 537 |
| 2014 | #211 | 1,541 |
| 2018 | #97 | 4,102 |
| 2022 | #68 | 5,241 |
| 2024 | #72 | 5,120 |
Everly's rise tracks almost exactly with the surge in -ley names generally. The "Ever-" prefix adds a feel of timelessness and poetry (everlasting, forever) that's distinct from the place-name origins of most -ley names. It's still rising and shows no sign of peaking.
Paisley: the pattern name
Paisley — Girls #73, 5,088 babies in 2024.
Paisley is unusual in this set because its primary association isn't a surname — it's a fabric pattern (the teardrop motif from Paisley, Scotland). That it works as a baby name at all shows how far the -ley sound has traveled.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 1994 | — | — |
| 2004 | ~#1,400 | ~90 |
| 2010 | #412 | 741 |
| 2014 | #127 | 3,047 |
| 2018 | #82 | 4,788 |
| 2022 | #71 | 5,178 |
| 2024 | #73 | 5,088 |
Paisley may have been nudged by Brad Paisley (country singer) — the name gained traction around the same time his career peaked. Country music has long been a vector for naming trends (see country-western-names). Paisley is now essentially flat at #73, suggesting it's near its ceiling.
Kinsley: the newest entrant
Kinsley — Girls #95, 4,046 babies in 2024.
Kinsley barely existed before 2010 and is now firmly in the top 100. There's no famous Kinsley in pop culture driving this — it's purely phonetic appeal.
| Year | Rank | Babies |
|---|---|---|
| 2004 | — | — |
| 2010 | #871 | 259 |
| 2014 | #341 | 917 |
| 2018 | #129 | 3,016 |
| 2022 | #98 | 3,990 |
| 2024 | #95 | 4,046 |
Kinsley is still climbing. It follows the pattern of names like Kinley, Kinslee, and Kinsleigh (variant spellings add hundreds more babies). The "Kins-" opening has the same friendly nickname energy as Kendall, Kylie, and other K-names that were popular with parents in the 2010s.
What's next
The -ley ending keeps producing new entrants:
- Hartley — #347 and rising sharply
- Oakley — #384 (girls), still climbing
- Brinley — entering the top 500
- Waverly — crossing into the top 400
- Hinley, Ansley, Kensley — appearing in the lower ranks
The -ley wave is in a different phase than the -er wave for boys: newer entrants are still climbing fast, suggesting the overall pattern has years to run. The core names (Riley, Everly, Paisley) are plateauing, but the edges are still expanding.
See rising-girl-names-2024 for all the current climbers, and gender-neutral-names for how Riley became one of the few truly ambiguous names.