US rank #1157 Boys' name Peak 1921 18,234 births

Wiley — #1157 US boys' name

18,234 babies named Wiley in U.S. Social Security records since 1880, with the highest year being 1921. Year-by-year trend, decade aggregates, and state-level rankings drawn from federal birth data.

1880s7261890s5761900s5901910s16761920s26211930s23201940s21791950s17351960s11471970s7001980s5281990s5342000s7952010s11992020s908
#1157
of 14,243 boys in use

More common than 92% of names given to boys today.

1920s
Peak decade

14% of everyone ever named Wiley was born in this single decade.

1921
Single peak year

304 babies were named Wiley in 1921 — its busiest year on record.

What the Data Says About Wiley

The Social Security Administration has registered 18,234 babies named Wiley between 1880 and 2024, spanning 145 consecutive years of U.S. birth records. As a boy's name, Wiley currently holds the #1157 rank among boys for 2024. The name reached its historical peak in 1921, when 304 babies received it in a single year.

Decade-level aggregation shows that Wiley performed strongest in the 1920s, accumulating 2,621 births during that ten-year window. Across the 15 decades of recorded activity, Wiley shows notable generational variation in parental adoption. Geographically, the name is most concentrated in North Carolina, which accounts for 1,654 births — the largest state-level total in the dataset — followed by Texas and Georgia. In total, SSA state-level files list Wiley in 33 of the 51 U.S. reporting jurisdictions.

No etymological entry is currently available for Wiley in our reference dataset. These figures derive from SSA's annual national and state-level name files, which include any name appearing at least five times in a given year or state-year; names below that threshold are suppressed for privacy and therefore excluded from the totals shown here. The 18,234 total represents a lower bound — actual usage may be higher in years or states where the count fell below the disclosure floor. This page is provided for informational and research purposes only and does not constitute personal, legal, or naming advice.

Wiley at a glance

Outside the top 1,000

Total births

18,234

Since 1880

145 years of records

Peak year

1921

304 births that year

Strongest decade: 1920s

Current rank

#1,157

Among boys

As of 2024

Active since

1880

Recorded for 145 years

Last year on file: 2024

Wiley popularity over time — boys

Annual U.S. births registered with the Social Security Administration · 2024–1880

Outside the top 1,000
Peak year (1921)
304
Annual births at peak — across 145 years of records
0100200300400 202420051986196719481929191018911880 78

Wiley popularity over time — girls

371 total births recorded since 1921 (Wiley as girls' name)

Unisex variant — 371 births
010203040 20242019201420081997194819281921 5

Wiley by decade

Total births in each ten-year window — peak vs trough at a glance

Peak: 1920s
Peak decade
1920s
2,621 births that decade — 14% of Wiley's all-time total
1880s7261890s5761900s5901910s16761920s26211930s23201940s21791950s17351960s11471970s7001980s5281990s5342000s7952010s11992020s908

Wiley by state

Where Wiley concentrates geographically — total births since 1880

Geographically diffuse
Top 8 states by recorded births for the name Wiley
Rank State Visual share Births Share of total
#1 North Carolina
1,654 9.1%
#2 Texas
1,469 8.1%
#3 Georgia
1,332 7.3%
#4 Alabama
1,075 5.9%
#5 Mississippi
848 4.7%
#6 Tennessee
825 4.5%
#7 California
626 3.4%
#8 Virginia
616 3.4%
North Carolina share of Wiley's total US births 9.1%
Even split

1,654 of 18,234 births nationwide. Compared to a flat distribution across 33 reporting states.

Wiley appears in 33 states. Explore state details →

Frequently Asked Questions

How popular is the name Wiley?
18,234 babies have been named Wiley since 1880. It currently ranks #1157 among boys. The peak year was 1921 with 304 births.
When was Wiley most popular?
Wiley was most popular in the 1920s decade with 2,621 total births. The single peak year was 1921.
Where is Wiley most popular?
The top states for the name Wiley are North Carolina (1,654 births), Texas (1,469 births), Georgia (1,332 births).
How long has the name Wiley been used?
Wiley has been recorded in Social Security data since 1880, spanning 145 years of data through 2024.
What names are similar to Wiley?
Names with a similar sound or spelling include William, Willie, Willard, Wilbur, and 4 more. These share a common prefix and are also used for boys.

Keep exploring Wiley

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Data Sources

Data as of 2024. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA).

Primary: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names from Social Security Card Applications — National Data, 1880–2024 (ssa.gov/oact/babynames). National-level data includes all names with 5 or more occurrences in a given year.

State-level: Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, Baby Names — State-Level Files (namesbystate.zip). Includes all names with 5 or more occurrences per state per year; rarer names are excluded for privacy.