Shelby
Shelby was the 649th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 444 babies. Its best year was 1991, when it ranked 33rd with 10,220 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 349 places. More babies were named Shelby in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Meaning willow farm (English place name) · English, Old Norse
Say it SHEL-bee /ˈʃɛlbi/
- Rank in 2025
- #649 girls, down 148 places since 2020
- Babies in 2025
- 444girls
- Girls and boys
- 92% girls, 8% boys2021–2025
- Peak year
- 199110,220 babies
- Total since 1880
- 165,279babies recorded
What does the name Shelby mean?
Shelby is an English surname and place-name surname used as a first name. Wiktionary calls its origin obscure but probably an altered form of Selby, a Middle English name meaning a farm or settlement by willows, from salwe, willow or sallow, and -by, a farm or settlement (a Norse ending). As an American name it was first a boys' name; girls' use began in the 1910s, and both peaked around 1990. Wiktionary records it today as a unisex name.
salwe (Middle English, “willow, sallow”)-by (Old Norse, “farm, settlement”)
How sure is this? Uncertain. Wiktionary calls the origin obscure and the Selby link 'likely'; not checked against a surname dictionary.
Related names: Selby, Shelbie.
See also: English names, names from places.
Sources for this meaning
- Wiktionary, entry 'Shelby' (English section), Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0; facts restated, no text reused)
- US Social Security Administration, national baby-name data 1880-2025 (yob*.txt), team3 computation of first year recorded, US Social Security Administration (public domain)
Shelby popularity since 1880
| Year | Rank (girls) | Rank (boys) | Babies (girls) | Babies (boys) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #649 | #3,032 | 444 | 41 |
| 2020 | #501 | #2,612 | 606 | 49 |
| 2010 | #184 | #2,673 | 1,680 | 46 |
| 2000 | #70 | #1,095 | 4,561 | 129 |
| 1990 | #100 | #525 | 3,517 | 354 |
| 1980 | #443 | #760 | 482 | 134 |
| 1970 | #499 | #650 | 400 | 159 |
| 1960 | #560 | #619 | 307 | 159 |
| 1950 | #519 | #569 | 248 | 143 |
| 1940 | #187 | #437 | 1,006 | 176 |
| 1930 | — | #570 | — | 111 |
| 1920 | #3,312 | #500 | 10 | 146 |
| 1910 | — | #534 | — | 29 |
| 1900 | — | #552 | — | 20 |
| 1890 | — | #625 | — | 11 |
| 1880 | — | #738 | — | 8 |
How popular is Shelby, counting every spelling?
Shelby is the most common spelling of a name family that ranked #622 for girls in 2025 once every spelling is counted together, compared with #649 for Shelby on its own. Together these spellings went to 470 girls in 2025.
| Spelling | Babies 2025 | Official rank | Babies 2021–2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Shelby | 444 | #649 | 2,397 |
| Shelbie | 13 | #8,279 | 62 |
| Shelbi | 13 | #8,278 | 41 |
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 Shelby?
444 of the 3,606,400 babies born in the US in 2025 were named Shelby (0.12 per 1,000 births). For a girl named Shelby 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 19 (of 430 pupils) would have a child named Shelby.
Shares of all registered births (NCHS); classes assumed to be children born the same year. How we estimate this.
How old are people named Shelby?
About 138,700 people born in the US named Shelby are alive today, with a median age of 30; half are between 24 and 35. That makes Shelby mostly worn by children and young adults.
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.
Shelby by state
How common Shelby was among girls born in each state in 2021–2025. It is notably more common than nationally in West Virginia (4.1×), Kentucky (2.6×), Tennessee (2.3×), South Carolina (2.0×), Alabama (1.9×). It is least common, relative to the national rate, in Connecticut, New York, Idaho.
Names with a similar history
These names rose and fell in step with Shelby: their share of US girls followed the most similar curve since 1880. If you like Shelby, they share its era and feel.
Middle names for Shelby · Sibling names for Shelby
Questions about the name Shelby
What does Shelby mean?
Shelby is usually explained as “willow farm (English place name)”, but this is uncertain. Certainty: uncertain.
How popular is the name Shelby?
Shelby was the 649th most popular name for girls in 2025, given to 444 babies. Its best year was 1991, when it ranked 33rd with 10,220 babies. Over the last ten years it has moved down 349 places. More babies were named Shelby in the 1990s than in any other decade.
Is Shelby a boy or girl name?
In 2021–2025, 92% girls, 8% boys given the name Shelby in the US.
Where is Shelby most popular?
In 2021–2025, Shelby was most common in West Virginia (1.22 per 1,000 girls), followed by Kentucky and Tennessee.