Shelley
- Gender
- Girl
- US rank, 2025
- #7,883 for girls
Shelley is a girls' name, meaning “clearing on a bank”. In 2025 it ranked 7,883rd for girls in the US (13 babies).
What does Shelley mean?
“clearing on a bank”
A male given name transferred from the surname, of mostly before 1930 usage.
From Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Is Shelley a girl's or a boy's name?
Shelley is a girls' name. In 2025, it was given to 13 girls in the US. Too few boys were given it to be listed.
How popular is Shelley in the UK?
No girls in the UK were given it in 2025, or too few to be listed. Its busiest year was 1996, with 107 girls.
Half of all the girls named Shelley in the UK since 1996 were born between 1997 and 2002. It was already well used in 1996, when the records begin, so earlier girls aren't counted.
Shelley in the UK, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3 | #5,966 |
| 2023 | 0 | – |
| 2022 | 0 | – |
| 2021 | 0 | – |
| 2020 | 4 | #4,744 |
| 2019 | 0 | – |
| 2018 | 1 | #7,536 |
| 2017 | 0 | – |
| 2016 | 0 | – |
| 2015 | 3 | #5,983 |
| 2014 | 0 | – |
| 2013 | 0 | – |
| 2012 | 6 | #3,881 |
| 2011 | 6 | #3,737 |
| 2010 | 7 | #3,308 |
| 2009 | 7 | #3,201 |
| 2008 | 6 | #3,589 |
| 2007 | 12 | #2,083 |
| 2006 | 6 | #3,280 |
| 2005 | 13 | #1,807 |
| 2004 | 23 | #1,112 |
| 2003 | 32 | #877 |
| 2002 | 26 | #962 |
| 2001 | 25 | #955 |
| 2000 | 41 | #674 |
| 1999 | 47 | #622 |
| 1998 | 63 | #511 |
| 1997 | 78 | #452 |
| 1996 | 107 | #360 |
How popular is Shelley in the US?
- Rank in 2025
- 7,883rd among girls
- Babies in 2025
- 13 about 1 in 120,000 girls
- Five-year trend
- Too rare to call too few babies to tell
- Same name in a class
- under 1% chance among 15 girls
In 2025, 13 girls in the US were named Shelley, making it the 7,883rd most popular name for girls. Five years earlier, in 2020, it was 7,208th. Its busiest year was 1964, with 2,821 girls. It first appears in the records in 1892.
It has been given to more girls each year for the last 3 years. 2025 had more girls named Shelley than any year since 2020.
Half of all the girls named Shelley in the US since 1880 were born between 1958 and 1973, the years shaded on the chart below.
In 1915, 22% of the babies named Shelley in the US were girls. By 2001 it was 92%, with more girls than boys since 1931.
Shelley in the US, year by year
| Year | Girls | Rank |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | #7,883 |
| 2024 | 11 | #8,941 |
| 2023 | 9 | #10,307 |
| 2022 | 7 | #12,237 |
| 2021 | 11 | #8,973 |
| 2020 | 15 | #7,208 |
| 2019 | 12 | #8,592 |
| 2018 | 12 | #8,612 |
| 2017 | 12 | #8,772 |
| 2016 | 17 | #6,898 |
| 2015 | 13 | #8,443 |
| 2014 | 21 | #5,991 |
| 2013 | 16 | #7,368 |
| 2012 | 17 | #7,140 |
| 2011 | 26 | #5,205 |
| 2010 | 28 | #4,972 |
| 2009 | 30 | #4,804 |
| 2008 | 36 | #4,267 |
| 2007 | 35 | #4,298 |
| 2006 | 40 | #3,794 |
| 2005 | 38 | #3,805 |
| 2004 | 42 | #3,486 |
| 2003 | 42 | #3,408 |
| 2002 | 39 | #3,457 |
| 2001 | 60 | #2,536 |
| 2000 | 69 | #2,254 |
| 1999 | 85 | #1,854 |
| 1998 | 94 | #1,688 |
| 1997 | 105 | #1,528 |
| 1996 | 112 | #1,464 |
| 1995 | 155 | #1,128 |
| 1994 | 162 | #1,103 |
| 1993 | 223 | #869 |
| 1992 | 266 | #772 |
| 1991 | 257 | #795 |
| 1990 | 298 | #704 |
| 1989 | 380 | #576 |
| 1988 | 426 | #519 |
| 1987 | 502 | #442 |
| 1986 | 563 | #400 |
| 1985 | 569 | #395 |
| 1984 | 706 | #329 |
| 1983 | 777 | #300 |
| 1982 | 848 | #288 |
| 1981 | 912 | #273 |
| 1980 | 1,131 | #226 |
| 1979 | 1,065 | #243 |
| 1978 | 1,028 | #238 |
| 1977 | 1,104 | #226 |
| 1976 | 1,275 | #194 |
| 1975 | 1,547 | #170 |
| 1974 | 1,997 | #142 |
| 1973 | 2,258 | #128 |
| 1972 | 2,384 | #126 |
| 1971 | 2,274 | #140 |
| 1970 | 2,351 | #144 |
| 1969 | 2,479 | #135 |
| 1968 | 2,483 | #129 |
| 1967 | 2,510 | #141 |
| 1966 | 2,545 | #140 |
| 1965 | 2,528 | #148 |
| 1964 | 2,821 | #143 |
| 1963 | 2,734 | #148 |
| 1962 | 2,476 | #162 |
| 1961 | 2,141 | #180 |
| 1960 | 2,139 | #182 |
| 1959 | 1,848 | #191 |
| 1958 | 1,722 | #197 |
| 1957 | 1,722 | #200 |
| 1956 | 1,681 | #196 |
| 1955 | 1,738 | #192 |
| 1954 | 2,177 | #161 |
| 1953 | 1,937 | #168 |
| 1952 | 1,886 | #163 |
| 1951 | 1,845 | #166 |
| 1950 | 1,670 | #170 |
| 1949 | 1,017 | #233 |
| 1948 | 413 | #391 |
| 1947 | 219 | #577 |
| 1946 | 196 | #570 |
| 1945 | 171 | #561 |
| 1944 | 132 | #638 |
| 1943 | 111 | #734 |
| 1942 | 98 | #762 |
| 1941 | 53 | #1,006 |
| 1940 | 63 | #906 |
| 1939 | 59 | #918 |
| 1938 | 36 | #1,219 |
| 1937 | 47 | #1,035 |
| 1936 | 44 | #1,053 |
| 1935 | 43 | #1,055 |
| 1934 | 33 | #1,236 |
| 1933 | 28 | #1,364 |
| 1932 | 25 | #1,520 |
| 1931 | 33 | #1,258 |
| 1930 | 15 | #2,201 |
| 1929 | 13 | #2,436 |
| 1928 | 14 | #2,380 |
| 1927 | 13 | #2,551 |
| 1926 | 10 | #3,045 |
| 1925 | 6 | #4,425 |
| 1924 | 6 | #4,432 |
| 1923 | 7 | #3,970 |
| 1922 | 8 | #3,653 |
| 1921 | 7 | #4,021 |
| 1920 | 11 | #2,899 |
| 1919 | 0 | – |
| 1918 | 8 | #3,511 |
| 1917 | 6 | #4,081 |
| 1916 | 0 | – |
| 1915 | 8 | #3,133 |
| 1914 | 5 | #3,617 |
| 1913 | 0 | – |
| 1912 | 5 | #2,977 |
| 1911 | 0 | – |
| 1910 | 0 | – |
| 1909 | 5 | #2,208 |
| 1908 | 0 | – |
| 1907 | 0 | – |
| 1906 | 0 | – |
| 1905 | 0 | – |
| 1904 | 0 | – |
| 1903 | 0 | – |
| 1902 | 0 | – |
| 1901 | 0 | – |
| 1900 | 0 | – |
| 1899 | 0 | – |
| 1898 | 5 | #1,699 |
| 1897 | 0 | – |
| 1896 | 0 | – |
| 1895 | 0 | – |
| 1894 | 0 | – |
| 1893 | 0 | – |
| 1892 | 6 | #1,278 |
Names like Shelley
Names given in the same years and the same naming tradition, with a similar sound.
Holly, Jessica, Robyn, Molly, Erin, Emily, Sydney, Amy, Melissa, Bethany, Stephanie, Penny
Names related to Shelley
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, “Shelley: name meaning, origin and popularity”, https://www.nameling.co.uk/names/shelley, updated 20 October 2026.