Shelley
Shelley was given to 13 girls in 2025, #8,278 among girls’ names; 74,339 Americans have been recorded with it since 1892 (Social Security Administration, published May 2026).
An estimated 63,700 Americans named Shelley and born in the U.S. are alive in 2026 (86% of everyone recorded); the median is 59 years old and half are between 52 and 67.
Girls and boys together; gaps are years SSA did not record (fewer than 5 births).
Births of Shelley by year: SSA national baby-name file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
What does Shelley mean?
Wiktionary, English section
Shelley is “a female given name transferred from the surname, of 1930s and later usage, also explained as a variant of Shirley or Michelle.” Its etymology gives the sense “clearing on a bank” (meaning).
Also “a male given name transferred from the surname, of mostly before 1930 usage.”
From Old English, meaning “clearing on a bank”.
/ˈʃɛli/
Meaning: Wiktionary, English section, as of Sep 25, 2026 (CC BY‑SA 4.0).
How popular is Shelley?
#8,278 among girls’ names, 2025
Shelley rose from #8,872 in 2015 to #8,278 in 2025 among girls’ names; its share of girls born rose from 7.3 to 8.1 per million.
2,845 babies in 1964, the peak
Shelley peaked in 1964, when 2,845 babies were given it (2,821 girls, #143 among girls’ names). The 13 births of 2025 are under 1% of that peak.
Births by sex.
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 13 | #8,278 | 0.01 |
| 2024 | 11 | #9,465 | 0.01 |
| 2023 | 9 | #11,046 | 0.01 |
| 2022 | 7 | #13,376 | under 0.01 |
| 2021 | 11 | #9,452 | 0.01 |
| 2020 | 15 | #7,515 | 0.01 |
| 2019 | 12 | #9,033 | 0.01 |
| 2018 | 12 | #9,069 | 0.01 |
| 2017 | 12 | #9,265 | 0.01 |
| 2016 | 17 | #7,190 | 0.01 |
Every recorded year (114)
| Year | Births | Rank | Per 1,000 girls |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 13 | #8,872 | 0.01 |
| 2014 | 21 | #6,179 | 0.01 |
| 2013 | 16 | #7,694 | 0.01 |
| 2012 | 17 | #7,411 | 0.01 |
| 2011 | 26 | #5,336 | 0.01 |
| 2010 | 28 | #5,084 | 0.02 |
| 2009 | 30 | #4,913 | 0.02 |
| 2008 | 36 | #4,344 | 0.02 |
| 2007 | 35 | #4,369 | 0.02 |
| 2006 | 40 | #3,844 | 0.02 |
| 2005 | 38 | #3,859 | 0.02 |
| 2004 | 42 | #3,556 | 0.02 |
| 2003 | 42 | #3,455 | 0.02 |
| 2002 | 39 | #3,515 | 0.02 |
| 2001 | 60 | #2,561 | 0.03 |
| 2000 | 69 | #2,270 | 0.04 |
| 1999 | 85 | #1,869 | 0.05 |
| 1998 | 94 | #1,704 | 0.05 |
| 1997 | 105 | #1,548 | 0.06 |
| 1996 | 112 | #1,475 | 0.06 |
| 1995 | 155 | #1,135 | 0.09 |
| 1994 | 162 | #1,110 | 0.09 |
| 1993 | 223 | #871 | 0.12 |
| 1992 | 266 | #774 | 0.14 |
| 1991 | 257 | #796 | 0.14 |
| 1990 | 298 | #705 | 0.16 |
| 1989 | 380 | #577 | 0.21 |
| 1988 | 426 | #520 | 0.24 |
| 1987 | 502 | #442 | 0.29 |
| 1986 | 563 | #400 | 0.33 |
| 1985 | 569 | #395 | 0.33 |
| 1984 | 706 | #330 | 0.42 |
| 1983 | 777 | #300 | 0.47 |
| 1982 | 848 | #288 | 0.50 |
| 1981 | 912 | #273 | 0.55 |
| 1980 | 1,131 | #226 | 0.68 |
| 1979 | 1,065 | #243 | 0.66 |
| 1978 | 1,028 | #239 | 0.67 |
| 1977 | 1,104 | #226 | 0.72 |
| 1976 | 1,275 | #194 | 0.87 |
| 1975 | 1,547 | #171 | 1.1 |
| 1974 | 1,997 | #142 | 1.4 |
| 1973 | 2,258 | #128 | 1.5 |
| 1972 | 2,384 | #126 | 1.6 |
| 1971 | 2,274 | #140 | 1.4 |
| 1970 | 2,351 | #144 | 1.3 |
| 1969 | 2,479 | #135 | 1.5 |
| 1968 | 2,483 | #129 | 1.5 |
| 1967 | 2,510 | #141 | 1.5 |
| 1966 | 2,545 | #140 | 1.5 |
| 1965 | 2,528 | #148 | 1.4 |
| 1964 | 2,821 | #143 | 1.5 |
| 1963 | 2,734 | #148 | 1.4 |
| 1962 | 2,476 | #162 | 1.3 |
| 1961 | 2,141 | #180 | 1.1 |
| 1960 | 2,139 | #182 | 1.1 |
| 1959 | 1,848 | #191 | 0.91 |
| 1958 | 1,722 | #197 | 0.86 |
| 1957 | 1,722 | #200 | 0.84 |
| 1956 | 1,681 | #196 | 0.84 |
| 1955 | 1,738 | #192 | 0.89 |
| 1954 | 2,177 | #161 | 1.1 |
| 1953 | 1,937 | #168 | 1.0 |
| 1952 | 1,886 | #164 | 1.0 |
| 1951 | 1,845 | #166 | 1.0 |
| 1950 | 1,670 | #170 | 1.0 |
| 1949 | 1,017 | #233 | 0.59 |
| 1948 | 413 | #391 | 0.24 |
| 1947 | 219 | #578 | 0.12 |
| 1946 | 196 | #571 | 0.12 |
| 1945 | 171 | #562 | 0.13 |
| 1944 | 132 | #642 | 0.10 |
| 1943 | 111 | #734 | 0.08 |
| 1942 | 98 | #767 | 0.07 |
| 1941 | 53 | #1,012 | 0.04 |
| 1940 | 63 | #911 | 0.06 |
| 1939 | 59 | #923 | 0.05 |
| 1938 | 36 | #1,227 | 0.03 |
| 1937 | 47 | #1,045 | 0.04 |
| 1936 | 44 | #1,060 | 0.04 |
| 1935 | 43 | #1,070 | 0.04 |
| 1934 | 33 | #1,255 | 0.03 |
| 1933 | 28 | #1,395 | 0.03 |
| 1932 | 25 | #1,564 | 0.02 |
| 1931 | 33 | #1,280 | 0.03 |
| 1930 | 15 | #2,289 | 0.01 |
| 1929 | 13 | #2,564 | 0.01 |
| 1928 | 14 | #2,485 | 0.01 |
| 1927 | 13 | #2,677 | 0.01 |
| 1926 | 10 | #3,239 | 0.01 |
| 1925 | 6 | #4,886 | under 0.01 |
| 1924 | 6 | #4,969 | under 0.01 |
| 1923 | 7 | #4,317 | 0.01 |
| 1922 | 8 | #3,961 | 0.01 |
| 1921 | 7 | #4,388 | 0.01 |
| 1920 | 11 | #3,069 | 0.01 |
| 1918 | 8 | #3,807 | 0.01 |
| 1917 | 6 | #4,516 | 0.01 |
| 1915 | 8 | #3,390 | 0.01 |
| 1914 | 5 | #4,114 | 0.01 |
| 1912 | 5 | #3,365 | 0.01 |
| 1909 | 5 | #2,502 | 0.01 |
| 1898 | 5 | #1,934 | 0.02 |
| 1892 | 6 | #1,428 | 0.03 |
Ranks and shares: girls’ names in each year’s SSA file; share of all girls SSA recorded that year.
Is Shelley a boy’s or a girl’s name?
Of the 74,339 Americans recorded as Shelley, 98% are girls and 2% boys. In 2025 it went to 13 girls; SSA lists no boys with it that year (fewer than 5, or none).
Years with fewer than 20 babies given the name are left blank.
Girls and boys named Shelley: the SSA national file counts each sex separately.
How many people are named Shelley, and how old are they?
63,700 alive in 2026, estimated
That is 86% of the 74,339 Americans ever recorded as Shelley. The median Shelley alive today is 59 years old; half are between 52 and 67.
The 2020 Census counted 64,253 people named Shelley (63,533 women and girls, 720 men and boys). SSA’s births carried forward to Census day, April 1, 2020, predict 66,631 born in the U.S. The Census count is 4% below that prediction.
Alive today, by age
Alive today, by generation
| Generation | Born | Alive |
|---|---|---|
| Silent Generation | 1928-1945 | 491 |
| Baby Boomers | 1946-1964 | 26,400 |
| Generation X | 1965-1980 | 28,900 |
| Millennials | 1981-1996 | 7,010 |
| Generation Z | 1997-2012 | 791 |
| Generation Alpha | 2013-2025 | 168 |
An estimate, not a count. SSA’s files count people born in the United States who received a Social Security number, so anyone born abroad is not in them; before 1937 most people got a number as adults, and their survival is counted from that age.
Living estimate: SSA births carried forward with the survival rates in SSA’s cohort life tables (2024 Trustees Report) for each birth year and sex. How the estimate is made. Count: Census Bureau, first names in the 2020 Census (released April 14, 2026; names reported 100 or more times, with the Bureau’s disclosure-avoidance adjustment).
Where are babies named Shelley born?
The states with the most babies named Shelley are California, Texas and New York, with 25% of its births recorded by state since 1910.
| State | Since 1910 | Rank, girls | vs. national |
|---|---|---|---|
| California | 8,191 | not ranked | 1.2× |
| Texas | 4,892 | not ranked | 1.0× |
| New York | 4,268 | not ranked | 0.7× |
| Ohio | 4,191 | not ranked | 1.1× |
| Michigan | 3,892 | not ranked | 1.2× |
| Pennsylvania | 2,966 | not ranked | 0.7× |
| Illinois | 2,918 | not ranked | 0.7× |
| Washington | 2,243 | not ranked | 1.8× |
| Indiana | 2,103 | not ranked | 1.0× |
| Minnesota | 1,794 | not ranked | 1.1× |
Where Shelley is more common than its national share predicts
Relative to its national share, Shelley is most over-represented in Oregon: since 1910 it was given 1.9 times as often there as its national share each year would predict.
States: SSA state file, 1910-2025, published May 8, 2026; births count girls and boys together, and the rank is among girls’ names in the state in 2025. The file leaves out any state and year with fewer than 5 babies of the name, so small states are undercounted; each ratio compares the state’s births of Shelley with the births its national share predicts year by year, for states with at least 100 births of the name.
Names spelled alike
Of these 8 names spelled alike, given to 182,001 babies since 1880, Shelley is the second most given (41% of them). In 2025 it was given to 13 of their 61 babies (21%), the third most given that year.
Spelled alike: names in the SSA national file with the same pattern of letters and sounds and at most two letters apart, and Wiktionary’s listed forms; births since 1880 and in 2025, and each name’s peak year, from the SSA national file, published May 8, 2026. Some are separate names, not spellings of one.
Names that rose and fell in the same decades as Shelley
Names whose births rose and fell across the same decades, measured on each decade’s share of births.
Similar histories: each decade’s share of births, from the SSA national file, 1880-2025, published May 8, 2026. SSA’s notes on the data.
More about Shelley and names like it
- Compare Shelley and ShellyBirths, ranks, peak and the living estimate side by side.
- The most given names of the 1960sShelley peaked in 1964.
- California’s most given namesThe state where SSA recorded the most babies named Shelley since 1910.
- From surnamesWiktionary’s origin for Shelley: every such name, by how often it is given.
- The top names of 1964The year the most babies were named Shelley.
- The names of Generation XMost people named Shelley alive today were born 1965-1980.
- Names starting with SMost given first.