Presley
Presley was the 225th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,362 babies. Its best year was 2015, when it ranked 188th; the most babies were born in 2014 (1,743). Over the last ten years it has moved down 37 places. More babies were named Presley in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Meaning priest's clearing (place name) · Old English
Say it PREZ-lee /ˈprɛzli/
- Rank in 2025
- #225 girls, down 12 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 1,362girls
- Girls and boys
- 93% girls, 7% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 20141,743 babies
- Total since 1880
- 36,723babies recorded
What does the name Presley mean?
Presley is usually a variant of the English surname Priestley, from Old English preost, 'priest', and leah, 'wood, clearing', as Wiktionary and Wikipedia explain. Wiktionary adds that a Scottish place name Presley may instead be Pictish, comparable to Welsh words for 'bush' and 'place'. As a first name it is a transferred surname used for both girls and boys in the US.
prēost (Old English, “priest”)lēah (Old English, “wood, clearing”)
How sure is this? Probable. Usually from Priestley; a Scottish Pictish place-name source is also possible.
Related names: Priestley, Presleigh, Pressley.
See also: English names, names that mean meadow, hill or valley, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Presley', Wiktionary (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
- Wikipedia, 'Presley', Wikipedia (Wikimedia Foundation); facts restated, no text reused
Nicknames for Presley
The usual nicknames for Presley are Pres.
| Nickname | Kind | Rank 2025 | Girls, 5 years |
|---|---|---|---|
| Pres | Modern | — | — |
Nicknames reviewed by our editors; counts are girls given the nickname as their legal first name. Nobody records how many Presleys go by each one.
Presley popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #225 | #1,819 | 1,362 | 88 |
| 2020 | #213 | #1,567 | 1,359 | 105 |
| 2010 | #276 | #1,255 | 1,206 | 140 |
| 2000 | #790 | #1,256 | 291 | 105 |
| 1990 | #2,195 | #3,917 | 59 | 15 |
| 1980 | — | #2,928 | — | 16 |
| 1970 | — | #2,707 | — | 13 |
| 1960 | — | #2,508 | — | 12 |
| 1950 | — | #1,420 | — | 27 |
| 1940 | — | #1,327 | — | 26 |
| 1930 | — | #1,556 | — | 23 |
| 1920 | — | #2,112 | — | 16 |
| 1910 | — | #1,178 | — | 9 |
| 1900 | — | #1,457 | — | 5 |
| 1890 | — | — | — | — |
| 1880 | — | #1,031 | — | 5 |
How popular is Presley, counting every spelling?
Presley is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #223 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #225 for Presley on its own. Together these spellings went to 1,554 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Presley | 1,362 | #225 | 6,977 |
| Preslee | 142 | #1,509 | 639 |
| Preslie | 34 | #4,250 | 151 |
| Pressley | 9 | #10,720 | 72 |
| Presli | 7 | #12,878 | 37 |
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 Presley?
1,362 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Presley (0.38 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Presley 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 6 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Presley.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Presley?
About 31,500 people born in the US named Presley are alive today, with a median age of 11; half are between 6 and 17. That makes Presley 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.
Presley by state
How common Presley was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in West Virginia (3.7×), North Dakota (3.5×), Oklahoma (2.8×), Arkansas (2.8×), South Dakota (2.8×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Connecticut, Massachusetts, New Jersey.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Presley: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Presley, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Presley · Sibling names for Presley
Questions about the name Presley
What does Presley mean?
Presley means “priest's clearing (place name)” (Old English origin). Certainty: probable.
How popular is the name Presley?
Presley was the 225th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 1,362 babies. Its best year was 2015, when it ranked 188th; the most babies were born in 2014 (1,743). Over the last ten years it has moved down 37 places. More babies were named Presley in the 2010s than in any other decade.
Is Presley a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 93% girls, 7% boys given the name Presley in the US.
Where is Presley most popular?
In 2021–2025, Presley was most common in West Virginia (3.17 per 1,000 girls), followed by North Dakota and Oklahoma.