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 [ 2 syll. ri-ley, ril-ey ] The boy name Riley is also used as a girl name, with the latter form being more common. Its pronunciation is RAYLiy KEY. Riley is used chiefly in the English language and it is derived from Old English origins. The name is of the meaning rye field. The name is derived from the surname, itself from the English place name in Devon, Lancashire, and elsewhere; the place name is of the elements 'ryge' (rye) and 'leah' (wood, clearing, meadow). In Ireland, the first name is sometimes derived from the surname Reilly, or else from the Old Irish personal name Raghallach. The name Reilly (English) and the name Reyly (English) are variants of Riley. Ryley (English variant spelling) is another form of Riley. Riley is popular as a baby name for boys, and it is also considered fairly trendy. The name's popularity has been rising since the 1960s. At the modest peak of its usage in 2006, 0.201% of baby boys were given the name Riley. Its ranking then was #101. In 2008, its usage was 0.190% and its ranking #106, and it was the most popular out of all boy names in its group. In 2008, Riley was used 20 times more than the subsequent ranked name, Reilly (English). Though Riley is more popular as a girl name today, there was a period before 2001 that it was given more often to boys. From 2002 on, increasingly more girls than boys were named Riley. In 2007, 37% more girls than boys were given the name Riley. Baby names that sound like Riley include Reilly (English), Ryley (English), Raleigh (English), Rally (English), Rawleigh (English), Rawley (English), Reyly (English), Roli (German), Rolli (Estonian), Rollie (English), Rollo (English), Rolly (English), Rolo (English and Spanish), Roly (English), Rowley (English), Royal (English), Rulo (Spanish), Raol (Spanish), Raoul (French and Spanish), and Raul (German, Italian, and Spanish). A famous person named Riley is Guitarist B.B. King, born Riley B. King, 16 September 1925, Itta Bena, Mississippi. KEY: Pronunciation for Riley: R as in "read (R.IY.D)" ; AY as in "hide (HH.AY.D)" ; L as in "lee (L.IY)" ; IY as in "eat (IY.T)"   |
