Blakely
Blakely was the 191st most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,638 babies. Its best year was 2021, when it ranked 156th; the most babies were born in 2024 (1,892). Over the last ten years it has moved up 166 places. More babies were named Blakely in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Meaning black clearing (place name) · Old English
Say it BLAYK-lee /ˈbleɪkli/
- Rank in 2025
- #191 girls, down 24 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,638girls
- Girls and boys
- Almost always a girl’s name2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20241,892 babies
- Total since 1880
- 22,036babies recorded
What does the name Blakely mean?
Blakely is a variant of Blakeley, an English surname from several small places. Wiktionary derives it from Old English blaec, 'black, dark', and leah, 'woodland clearing', so a dark clearing. As a first name it is a recent American transfer, used for both girls and boys, and Wikipedia lists several US places called Blakely. Blake, a related surname, has the same uncertainty between 'black' and 'pale'.
blæc (Old English, “black, dark”)lēah (Old English, “woodland clearing”)
How sure is this? Probable. Old English blæc 'black' and blāc 'pale' look alike in place names, so the first element can be ambiguous.
Related names: Blakeley, Blake, Blakelee.
See also: English names, names that mean meadow, hill or valley, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Blakely', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wiktionary, entry 'Blakeley', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Blakely', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Blakely popularity since 1880
A few boys are given the name too: 1,234 since 1920, 8 in 2025.
| Year | Rank (girls) | Babies (girls) |
|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #191 | 1,638 |
| 2020 | #167 | 1,713 |
| 2010 | #1,077 | 231 |
| 2000 | #2,595 | 57 |
| 1990 | #4,393 | 22 |
| 1980 | #4,345 | 17 |
| 1970 | — | — |
| 1960 | — | — |
| 1950 | — | — |
| 1940 | — | — |
| 1930 | — | — |
| 1920 | — | — |
| 1910 | — | — |
| 1900 | — | — |
| 1890 | — | — |
| 1880 | — | — |
How popular is Blakely, counting every spelling?
Blakely is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #194 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #191 for Blakely on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,795 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Blakely | 1,638 | #191 | 8,964 |
| Blakelee | 88 | #2,124 | 508 |
| Blakeley | 69 | #2,547 | 345 |
Spellings count together when they sound the same in American English and are used for the same sex; nicknames and forms that sound different (such as Theo and Theodore) are kept apart. How we group spellings.
How many kids will share the name Blakely?
1,638 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Blakely (0.45 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Blakely born in 2025, the chance that another child with the same name is in a class of 20 children the same age is under 1 in 50. If every grade liked the name as much as the 2025 babies do, only about one elementary school in 5 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Blakely.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Blakely?
About 20,700 people born in the US named Blakely are alive today, with a median age of 6; half are between 3 and 10. That makes Blakely a young name: most people with it are children.
Babies given the name each year (SSA) times the share of that birth year still alive (SSA life tables). Counts people born in the US only. Method.
Blakely by state
How common Blakely was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in Wyoming (5.7×), North Dakota (4.2×), Arkansas (3.9×), Montana (3.6×), Idaho (3.5×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in New Jersey, New Mexico, Massachusetts.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Blakely: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Blakely, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Blakely · Sibling names for Blakely
Questions about the name Blakely
What does Blakely mean?
Blakely means “black clearing (place name)” (Old English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Blakely?
Blakely was the 191st most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,638 babies. Its best year was 2021, when it ranked 156th; the most babies were born in 2024 (1,892). Over the last ten years it has moved up 166 places. More babies were named Blakely in the 2020s than in any other decade.
Is Blakely a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, almost always a girl’s name given the name Blakely in the US.
Where is Blakely most popular?
In 2021–2025, Blakely was most common in Wyoming (6.33 per 1,000 girls), followed by North Dakota and Arkansas.