Finley
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The story
Finley's path into English begins with a Gaelic personal name. It is a variant of Finlay, the Anglicized form of Scottish Gaelic Fionnlagh. Behind that longer spelling are the Old Irish elements finn, "white, blessed," and láech, "warrior," giving the compound meaning "white warrior." The history also holds a familiar name in an unfamiliar setting: an older form, Findláech, belonged to the father of the historical Macbeth. Royal histories call him Finlay, Mormaer of Moray. That connection belongs to medieval Scotland, rather than to a name Shakespeare invented for his play. Finley itself is the later English form, now used for girls as well as boys. Moving between those spellings brings the distance into view: a modern English name leads back through Gaelic to the family of a real Scottish king.
How popular is Finley around the world?
In the United States, 13,923 babies were named Finley between 2020 and 2025. In England and Wales, 1,733 boys named Finley were born in 2025, the 18th most common name among boys that year.
Finley is on the official records of the United States, England and Wales, Scotland, South Australia, Ireland, Canada, New Zealand and Austria.
United States
1 in 1,600
In the United States, 13,923 babies were named Finley between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Finley peaked in the 2020s. In 2025 Finley went to 753 girls and 1,017 boys in the US Social Security record, one of the few names given to girls and boys in nearly equal numbers. Finley went to 2,662 US babies in 2015 and 1,770 in 2025, 66% of the earlier figure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
England and Wales
1 in 340
In England and Wales, 1,733 boys named Finley were born in 2025, the 18th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Birth registrations in England and Wales (not the whole UK); exact spellings are counted separately, and any spelling under 3 in a year is withheld at source. Source: Office for National Statistics, baby names in England and Wales
Scotland
1 in 1,100
In Scotland, 41 boys named Finley were registered in 2024, the 120th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in Scotland; different spellings count separately but accents are merged at source, and any spelling under 3 in total is suppressed. Source: National Records of Scotland, babies' first names
South Australia
1 in 1,7002017
In South Australia, 10 boys were registered as Finley in 2017.
share of that year’s name registrations
Births registered in South Australia (not all of Australia) by first name and year of registration, 1944–2017, from the state’s Births, Deaths and Marriages registry, which publishes every name down to a single birth in capitals; a spelling its export repeats inside a year is counted once, and from 2018 only a top 100 is published, so the series ends at 2017. Source: Consumer and Business Services (South Australia), popular baby names
Ireland
1 in 1,700
In Ireland, 32 boys named Finley were born in 2025, the 159th most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
Exact registered spellings from Irish vital statistics; any name under 3 in a year is withheld at source, and accented spellings (fadas) are recorded reliably only from 2018. Source: Central Statistics Office (Ireland), Irish babies' names
Canada
1 in 1,700
In Canada, 157 boys named Finley were born in 2024, the 214th most common name among boys that year.
In Canada, 59 girls named Finley were born in 2024, the 501st most common name among girls that year.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from provincial and territorial vital statistics across Canada; any name-sex-year under 5 is excluded at source, and small Quebec counts carry a randomized adjustment made at source. Shares divide by Statistics Canada’s count of live births for the year; the 2024 count is preliminary. Source: Statistics Canada, first names at birth (table 17-10-0147-01)
New Zealand
1 in 1,700
In New Zealand, 33 boys named Finley were registered in 2025.
share of that year’s name registrations
First given names from New Zealand birth registrations, grouped by registration year; any name under 10 in a year is excluded at source. Shares divide by Stats NZ’s count of births registered to mothers living in New Zealand, under 1% below the registry’s own count. Source: Department of Internal Affairs (New Zealand), baby name popularity over time
Austria
1 in 38,000
In Austria, 2 boys named Finley were born in 2025, ranked 1,241st among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
share of that year’s births on record
Live births in Austria by year of birth, 1984–2025, from Statistik Austria’s first-name statistics; spellings that differ only by special characters are counted together (umlauts stay apart), every name down to a single birth is published, and the count covers babies with Austrian citizenship only until 2009, every baby from 2010, and from 2015 also births abroad to mothers living in Austria. Shares divide by Statistik Austria’s count of live births from 2010, and before that by the file’s own total for the year. Source: Statistik Austria - data.statistik.gv.at (OGDEXT_VORNAMEN_1, updated 2026-07-09)
Poland
last on record 2023
Finley is not on the 2025 record for Poland, where names given fewer than 2 times in a year are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 3 in a year, too few to chart.
First names given to children born in Poland by year of birth, 2000–2025, from the PESEL population register (Ministry of Digital Affairs); exact spellings count separately (Łukasz and Lukasz are different names), names given fewer than 5 times in a year were left off the list through 2012 and fewer than 2 times from 2013, and the register also counts children born abroad, so its yearly sums run above Poland’s live births. Shares divide by the register’s own published total for the year, never by births. Source: Ministry of Digital Affairs, PESEL register (dane.gov.pl)
Not on the record in Spain, Mexico City, Argentina and Puerto Rico: those registries withhold small counts, so rare uses may sit below their floors.
Not on the Chile record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 5 registrations in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on the Montevideo record for 1940 to 2011: that registry withholds nothing, so this spelling was not given there in those years. Not on the France record: nametree keeps spellings that reached 20 births in some year, so rarer uses are not shown. Not on Norway’s list: Statistics Norway lists only first names carried by 200 or more living people, so rarer names are not shown.
When you meet Finley
Most people given the name Finley in the United States are children or teenagers today. The name belongs to this generation.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Finley · Names that go with Finley · Nicknames for Finley · Middle names for Finley · Gender-neutral names · Truly unisex names · Climbers and fallers
The Finley deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Finley truly comes from, how it traveled, and what a century of records reveals. If you have grown a tree on nametree, it also considers how Finley fits with your family’s names and surname.
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