Given name & surname
Cayley
“one who is lean”·“crowned with laurel”·“one who is slender”
Cayley is a variant of Caley. One interpretation is “one who is lean.” Cayley is a variant of Cayla. Interpretations include “crowned with laurel” and “one who is slender”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Meaning & origin
What it means
Cayley is a variant of Caley. One interpretation is “one who is lean.” Cayley is a variant of Cayla. Interpretations include “crowned with laurel” and “one who is slender”. These belong to different or overlapping naming contexts.
Explained through its name family
Where it comes from
Cayley is a variant of Cayla. An origin associated with Cayla is Hebrew.
Explained through its name family
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1984. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Cayley through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 1,213
- 0 boys · 1,213 girls
- Most popular year
- 1998
- 75 babies
- 2025
- 7
- #12,169 for girls
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −44%
- Cooling
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 7 U.S. birth records for girls, ranking No. 12,169 among girls’ names. Average annual use for girls was 44.4% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for girls was 75 in 1998. Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 1,130 as a first name in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Cayley’s family of names
In English usage, Cayley has a related form in Kaylee. Cayley has a related form in Cayla. Cayley has a related form in Caley.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Nicknames & forms 3
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
Similar names
If you love Cayley, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.