Ridley
- Gender
- Boy
- Say it
- RID-lee
- Origin
- English
- UK rank, 2025
- #1,964 for boys
- US rank, 2025
- #2,002 for girls
Ridley is a boys' name of English origin, meaning “reed clearing or cleared woodland”. In 2025 it ranked 1,964th for boys in the UK (13 babies) and 2,002nd for girls in the US (95 babies).
What does Ridley mean?
English: surname from place names, Old English leah 'clearing'
“reed clearing or cleared woodland”
Nicholas Ridley, Bishop of London, was burned at Oxford in 1555 alongside Hugh Latimer as one of the Oxford Martyrs.
More on Wiktionary.
Is Ridley a girl's or a boy's name?
Ridley is a boys' name. In 2025, it was given to 13 boys in the UK and 95 girls and 71 boys in the US.
How popular is Ridley in the UK?
- Rank in 2025
- #1,964among boys
- Babies in 2025
- 13about 1 in 23,000 boys
- Five-year trend
- Steadyup 19% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 boys
In 2025, 13 boys in the UK were named Ridley, making it the 1,964th most popular name for boys. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 2,562nd. Its busiest year was 2012, with 21 boys.
Half of all the boys named Ridley in the UK since 1996 were born between 2010 and 2019, the years shaded on the chart below.
Among boys in 2025, it was 1,894th in England and Wales.
Ridley in the UK, year by year
| Year | Boys | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | #1,964 |
| 2024 | 6 | #3,335 |
| 2023 | 13 | #1,917 |
| 2022 | 5 | #3,639 |
| 2021 | 12 | #1,969 |
| 2020 | 8 | #2,562 |
| 2019 | 12 | #1,974 |
| 2018 | 7 | #2,823 |
| 2017 | 19 | #1,428 |
| 2016 | 15 | #1,723 |
| 2015 | 16 | #1,612 |
| 2014 | 10 | #2,207 |
| 2013 | 16 | #1,560 |
| 2012 | 21 | #1,313 |
| 2011 | 14 | #1,697 |
| 2010 | 14 | #1,724 |
| 2009 | 11 | #1,959 |
| 2008 | 8 | #2,384 |
| 2007 | 9 | #2,139 |
| 2006 | 8 | #2,193 |
| 2005 | 4 | #3,330 |
| 2004 | 6 | #2,399 |
| 2003 | 4 | #2,990 |
| 2002 | 5 | #2,358 |
| 2001 | 4 | #2,714 |
| 2000 | 0 | – |
| 1999 | 3 | #3,043 |
How popular is Ridley in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- #2,002among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 95about 1 in 17,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Steadydown 9% in five years
- Same name in a class
- under 1%chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 95 girls in the US were named Ridley, making it the 2,002nd most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 1,893rd. Its busiest year was 2018, with 124 girls. It first appears in the records in 2002. 71 boys were also named Ridley in 2025 (2,077th for boys).
2025 had fewer girls named Ridley than any year since 2017.
Half of all the girls named Ridley in the US since 1880 were born between 2015 and 2022, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 2003, 32% of the babies named Ridley in the US were girls. By 2025 it was 57%, with more girls than boys since 2014.
Ridley in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 95 | #2,002 |
| 2024 | 103 | #1,925 |
| 2023 | 107 | #1,865 |
| 2022 | 104 | #1,918 |
| 2021 | 98 | #1,980 |
| 2020 | 101 | #1,893 |
| 2019 | 111 | #1,833 |
| 2018 | 124 | #1,677 |
| 2017 | 75 | #2,401 |
| 2016 | 84 | #2,269 |
| 2015 | 71 | #2,524 |
| 2014 | 72 | #2,497 |
| 2013 | 33 | #4,334 |
| 2012 | 28 | #4,955 |
| 2011 | 26 | #5,205 |
| 2010 | 17 | #7,214 |
| 2009 | 20 | #6,541 |
| 2008 | 20 | #6,556 |
| 2007 | 12 | #9,535 |
| 2006 | 19 | #6,590 |
| 2005 | 12 | #8,878 |
| 2004 | 13 | #8,254 |
| 2003 | 10 | #9,666 |
| 2002 | 9 | #10,240 |
Names like Ridley
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Finley Riley Oakley Rowan Brody Marley Finn Ronan Kayden Renley Aiden Kian
Names related to Ridley
More English names
Lily Evelyn Hudson Ivy Harper Grace Violet Willow Daisy Poppy Mason Cooper Ruby Hallie Hazel Carter
Sources
Figures from Baby names in England and Wales (Office for National Statistics), Babies' first names (National Records of Scotland), Baby names (Northern Ireland Statistics and Research Agency) and 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, “Ridley: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/ridley, updated 20 October 2026.