Given name & surname
Stanley
“from the stony meadow”
Stanley is used as a given name and a surname. One English interpretation is “from the stony meadow.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One English interpretation is “from the stony meadow.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is English.
How it developed
It entered given-name use through an existing surname.
The story
Its naming history includes the use of a family name as a given name.
Stanley through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 302,862
- 301,425 boys · 1,437 girls
- Most popular year
- 1954
- 6,472 babies
- 2025
- 278
- #863 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- −16%
- Easing
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 278 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 863 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 15.6% lower in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. Its largest published annual count for boys was 6,448 in 1954. In 2025, California had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (27). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 135,819 as a first name in 2020; 91,375 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Stanley’s family of names
Stanley has a short form in Stan. Stanley has a related form in Stanly. In English usage, Stanley has a related form in Stan.
Inner ring: spellings · outer: nicknames and forms.
Nicknames & forms 12
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Standiminutive · English
- Stanleevariant
- Standleyvariant · English
- Stanlyvariant · English
- Stanleighvariant
- Stannleylikely variant
- Stanlleylikely variant
- Stanleyelikely variant
Show 4 moreShow fewer
Spellings & scripts 3
The same name written differently, including transliterations into other scripts.
See also 2
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Stanley
- Stanley KubrickAmerican filmmaker (1928–1999)
- Stan LeeAmerican comic book writer, editor, publisher, and producer (1922–2018)
- Stanley BaldwinBritish statesman (1867–1947)
- Stanley TucciAmerican actor and author (born 1960)
- Stanley B. PrusinerAmerican neurologist and biochemistborn 1942
- Stanley CohenAmerican biochemist1922–2020
- Stanley MatthewsEnglish association football player (1915-2000)
- Stanley MilgramAmerican social psychologist (1933–1984)
- Stanley KramerAmerican film director and producer (1913-2001)
Characters named Stanley: Grunkle Stan (Gravity Falls character), Stanley Kowalski (Tennessee Williams' A Streetcar Named Desire), Inspector Hopkins.
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Stanley, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
Dale
“from the small valley” · “from the valley”
97% boys · 3% girls
Lee
“from the meadow”
94% boys · 6% girls
Nelson
“the son of Neil; the son of a champion”
99% boys · 1% girls
Stockley
“from the meadow of tree stumps”
>99% boys
Kelvin
“a friend of ships; a man of the river”
>99% boys
Curtis
“one who is courteous; polite”
>99% boys
Dudley
“from the people's meadow”
>99% boys
Mannley
“from the hero's meadow; from the man's meadow”
>99% boys