At a glance
- U.S. rank 2025 (girls)
- #11,932 (outside the top 1,000)
- Babies in 2025 (girls)
- 7 (<0.01% of girls)
- As a boy name
- Last recorded 2023 (#12,239)Peak #2,386 in 1942
- Trend (girls)
- Rising #13,453 in 2020 to #11,932 in 2025
- Peak (girls)
- #7,388 in 1971
- First recorded
- 1913 (as a boy name; 1969 as a girl name)
Meaning of Staley
Bathed in the honeyed light of an Italian dawn, Staley unfolds like a sunlit tapestry—an English heritage name borne of stall (“dwelling”) and leah (“woodland clearing”), yet softened by the warmth of modern unisex charm. In its stately cadence, STAY-lee carries the whisper of ancient oaks swaying in a summer breeze, while its sleek, balanced structure evokes the graceful arches of a Venetian bridge at sunset. Though rooted in venerable Old English soil, Staley blossoms with cosmopolitan ease, embracing both masculine and feminine spirits in a single, lyrical breath. It is a name that feels at home on the lips of a newborn cradled beneath Tuscan skies, yet equally at ease amid the bustling streets of New York—proof that true elegance transcends borders. Lightly playful and richly evocative, Staley offers families a name as timeless as an opera’s final note and as fresh as the first bloom of spring.
How to pronounce Staley
English
- Pronounced STAY-lee /ˈste.li/
Popularity of Staley in the U.S.
Staley was the #11,932 girl name in the U.S. in 2025, with 7 babies. It peaked at #7,388 in 1971. It first appears in the records in 1913, as a boy name, and was last recorded as one in 2023, at #12,239.
- Rank among U.S. girl names (right scale, #1 at the top)
Girls year by year, 1969–2025 24 rows
| Year | Babies | Rank | vs previous year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 7 | 11,932 | ▲ 3,361 |
| 2024 | 5 | 15,293 | ▼ 1,831 |
| 2023 | 6 | 13,462 | ▼ 3,079 |
| 2022 | 9 | 10,383 | ▲ 1,823 |
| 2021 | 7 | 12,206 | ▲ 1,247 |
| 2020 | 6 | 13,453 | ▲ 346 |
| 2019 | 6 | 13,799 | ▼ 3,254 |
| 2018 | 9 | 10,545 | ▲ 1,070 |
| 2017 | 8 | 11,615 | ▼ 2,740 |
| 2016 | 12 | 8,875 | ▲ 2,960 |
| 2015 | 8 | 11,835 | ▲ 4,678 |
| 2014 | 5 | 16,513 | ▲ 34 |
| 2013 | 5 | 16,547 | back (not recorded in 2010–2012) |
| 2009 | 7 | 13,704 | back (not recorded in 2007–2008) |
| 2006 | 6 | 15,152 | ▲ 1,310 |
| 2005 | 5 | 16,462 | ▼ 2,283 |
| 2004 | 6 | 14,179 | back (not recorded in 2003) |
| 2002 | 6 | 13,595 | back (not recorded in 2001) |
| 2000 | 6 | 13,154 | back (not recorded in 1998–1999) |
| 1997 | 5 | 13,724 | back (not recorded in 1986–1996) |
| 1985 | 5 | 10,677 | back (not recorded in 1981–1984) |
| 1980 | 7 | 8,178 | back (not recorded in 1972–1979) |
| 1971 | 6 | 7,388 | back (not recorded in 1970) |
| 1969 | 5 | 7,471 | new |
Boys year by year, 1913–2023 41 rows
| Year | Babies | Rank | vs previous year |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 5 | 12,239 | ▲ 91 |
| 2022 | 5 | 12,330 | back (not recorded in 2021) |
| 2020 | 5 | 12,022 | back (not recorded in 2019) |
| 2018 | 5 | 12,156 | ▼ 1,381 |
| 2017 | 6 | 10,775 | ▼ 1,111 |
| 2016 | 7 | 9,664 | back (not recorded in 2013–2015) |
| 2012 | 5 | 12,274 | back (not recorded in 2010–2011) |
| 2009 | 5 | 12,491 | ▼ 2,620 |
| 2008 | 7 | 9,871 | back (not recorded in 2007) |
| 2006 | 8 | 8,732 | ▲ 2,740 |
| 2005 | 5 | 11,472 | back (not recorded in 2004) |
| 2003 | 6 | 9,581 | back (not recorded in 1996–2002) |
| 1995 | 5 | 8,868 | back (not recorded in 1987–1994) |
| 1986 | 5 | 6,721 | back (not recorded in 1979–1985) |
| 1978 | 5 | 5,773 | back (not recorded in 1969–1977) |
| 1968 | 5 | 4,136 | back (not recorded in 1965–1967) |
| 1964 | 5 | 4,039 | ▼ 995 |
| 1963 | 8 | 3,044 | ▼ 3 |
| 1962 | 8 | 3,041 | ▲ 1,025 |
| 1961 | 5 | 4,066 | back (not recorded in 1958–1960) |
| 1957 | 7 | 3,257 | ▲ 278 |
| 1956 | 6 | 3,535 | ▲ 351 |
| 1955 | 5 | 3,886 | back (not recorded in 1954) |
| 1953 | 7 | 3,143 | back (not recorded in 1946–1952) |
| 1945 | 9 | 2,393 | back (not recorded in 1943–1944) |
| 1942 | 10 | 2,386 | ▲ 747 |
| 1941 | 6 | 3,133 | back (not recorded in 1938–1940) |
| 1937 | 5 | 3,518 | ▼ 664 |
| 1936 | 7 | 2,854 | back (not recorded in 1935) |
| 1934 | 5 | 3,679 | ▼ 411 |
| 1933 | 6 | 3,268 | back (not recorded in 1932) |
| 1931 | 8 | 2,864 | back (not recorded in 1930) |
| 1929 | 9 | 2,766 | ▲ 1,385 |
| 1928 | 5 | 4,151 | back (not recorded in 1924–1927) |
| 1923 | 8 | 3,175 | ▲ 77 |
| 1922 | 8 | 3,252 | back (not recorded in 1919–1921) |
| 1918 | 5 | 4,179 | ▼ 198 |
| 1917 | 5 | 3,981 | ▼ 1,055 |
| 1916 | 8 | 2,926 | ▲ 156 |
| 1915 | 7 | 3,082 | back (not recorded in 1914) |
| 1913 | 5 | 2,821 | new |
Notable people named Staley
- Staley Thomas McBrayer was an American newspaper publisher and inventor whose Vanguard web offset press made newspaper printing faster and more affordable.