Knightly
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- NITE-lee
- Origin
- English
Knightly is a boys' name of English origin, meaning “like a knight, chivalrous”. Too few babies were given it in the latest year to rank.
What does Knightly mean?
English: English word; also a form of the surname Knightley
“like a knight, chivalrous”
Mr Knightley is the hero of Jane Austen's novel Emma (1815).
Is Knightly a girl's or a boy's name?
Knightly is a boys' name.
How popular is Knightly in the US?
No boys in the US were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 2017, with 11 boys. It first appears in the records in 2012.
Half of all the boys named Knightly in the US since 1880 were born between 2016 and 2021, the years shaded on the chart below.
Knightly in the US, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 5 | #12,341 |
| 2023 | 0 | – |
| 2022 | 5 | #12,322 |
| 2021 | 6 | #10,794 |
| 2020 | 7 | #9,548 |
| 2019 | 9 | #8,209 |
| 2018 | 0 | – |
| 2017 | 11 | #7,091 |
| 2016 | 5 | #12,180 |
| 2015 | 7 | #9,562 |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 0 | – |
| 2012 | 6 | #10,763 |
Names like Knightly
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Kayden Rowdy Deacon Kyaire Kody Cassian Finnegan Cannon Kyden Brecken Keegan Sevyn
More English names
Lily Evelyn Hudson Ivy Harper Grace Violet Willow Daisy Poppy Riley Oakley Mason Cooper Ruby Hallie
Sources
Figures from Popular Baby Names (US Social Security Administration). Nameling last updated them on 20 October 2026. How the figures are worked out, and the data to download.
To cite this page: Nameling, “Knightly: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/knightly, updated 20 October 2026.