Wesley
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Meaning
"western meadow," an Old English place name; it became a given name in tribute to John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, and spread wherever Methodist circuit riders preached. Softly scholarly, with Wes as the easy short form
Goes by Wes. See all nicknames
The story
Wesley began as an English place name, the western meadow, attached to a family that changed religious history: John Wesley, the eighteenth-century founder of Methodism, whose followers turned his surname into a given name in tribute. Wherever Methodist circuit riders preached, boys named Wesley followed, and the name has carried that softly scholarly air ever since, with Wes waiting as the easy, friendly short form. Its American record is remarkable mostly for its steadiness: for seven straight decades it barely moved, a dependable presence through wars, booms, and fashion cycles that toppled flashier names. Then, from the 1970s on, it began a slow, deliberate climb, and the 2020s are quietly its best decade yet. Wesley is proof that a name does not need a dramatic story to succeed; sometimes reliability is the story.
How popular is Wesley around the world?
In the United States, 28,545 babies were named Wesley between 2020 and 2025. In Canada, 534 boys named Wesley were born in 2024, the 40th most common name among boys that year.
Wesley is on the official records of the United States, Canada, Brazil, New Zealand, South Australia, France, England and Wales, Scotland, Montevideo, Chile, Austria and Spain.
Wesley crosses languages: it is in the latest top 300 of an English-speaking birth record and of Brazil’s 2022 census, which counts people of every age. The full list: English and Portuguese
United States
1 in 760
In the United States, 28,545 babies were named Wesley between 2020 and 2025.
Shape drawn from US Social Security baby-name records. Wesley peaked in the 2010s and the 2020s in nearly equal measure.
Births with a Social Security record. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration
Canada
1 in 670
In Canada, 534 boys named Wesley were born in 2024, the 40th most common name among boys 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)
Brazil
1 in 980
At the 2022 census, 207,677 people in Brazil were named Wesley, the 155th most common name, with a median age of 23.
Among people named Wesley living in Brazil at the 2022 census, more were born in the 1990s than in any other decade.
people alive at the 2022 census, by decade of birth
The census also counted 4,401 born between 2020 and August 2022, too recent a span to chart. People alive and resident in Brazil at the 2022 census, a living-population count, not births; names under 20 are withheld at source. Source: IBGE, Censo Demográfico 2022
New Zealand
1 in 3,200
In New Zealand, 18 boys named Wesley 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
South Australia
1 in 3,7002017
In South Australia, 5 boys were registered as Wesley 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
France
1 in 7,600
In France, about 85 boys named Wesley were born in 2025, the 531st most common name among boys that year.
share of that year’s births on record
Births in France by year of birth, from INSEE’s fichier des prénoms (1900–2025; Mayotte from 2012); exact spellings count separately (Léo and Leo are different names), any spelling under 3 in a year and sex is withheld at source, every count is rounded to the nearest 5 at source, and nametree keeps the spellings that reached 20 in some year. Shares divide by INSEE’s count of births in France from 1957, and before that by the file’s own total for the year; INSEE says the file is not complete before 1946. Source: Insee, fichier des prénoms (last updated 2026-07-16)
England and Wales
1 in 8,100
In England and Wales, 72 boys named Wesley were born in 2025, the 539th 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 11,000
In Scotland, 4 boys named Wesley were registered in 2024, the 619th 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
Montevideo City
1 in 25,0002011
In Montevideo, 1 boy named Wesley was born in 2011, spelling variants counted together.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
Births in the department of Montevideo (not all of Uruguay) by first name and year of birth, 1940–2011, from the city’s civil registry, which writes names in capitals, almost always without accents; counted as spelling groups (accent and punctuation variants merged), nothing is withheld at source, and 2012 is excluded as a partial year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil, Intendencia de Montevideo, Partidas de Registro Civil de Montevideo (Licencia de Datos Abiertos - Uruguay); 2012 dropped as partial
Chile
1 in 36,000
In Chile, 5 boys were registered as Wesley in 2021, every accent spelling counted together.
The count never rose above 5 in a year, too few to chart.
First-name registrations with Chile’s civil registry by year of registration, 1920–2021, counted as spelling groups (Sofía, Sofia and Sofìa are one name, shown with its most-registered spelling); the registry withholds nothing, nametree keeps the groups that reached 5 registrations in some year, and shares divide by every registration of the year. Source: Servicio de Registro Civil e Identificación (Chile) via the guaguas package, first-name registrations 1920-2021
Austria
1 in 76,000
In Austria, 1 boy named Wesley was born in 2025, ranked 1,842nd among boys that year, spellings that differ only by special characters counted together.
The count never rose above 2 in a year, too few to chart.
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)
Spain
1 in 210,000
In Spain, 217 residents are named Wesley, ranked 4,365th among men, with a mean age of 31.2 years.
Residents of Spain on 1 January 2025. Spain publishes how old a name’s living bearers are, not a birth series, so there is no year chart. Source: INE (Spain), Censo de Población anual, 1 January 2025
Argentina
last on record 2020
Wesley is not on the 2024 record for Argentina, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 4 in a year, too few to chart.
Given-name components of births in Argentina 2012–2024; national cells are lower bounds and no sex split is published. Source: RENAPER (Argentina), Dirección Nacional de Población, given names 2012-2024
Ireland
last on record 2023
Wesley is not on the 2025 record for Ireland, where names under 3 in a year are withheld at source.
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
Mexico City City
last on record 2018
Wesley is not on the 2022 record for Mexico City, where small counts are withheld at source.
The count never rose above 7 in a year, too few to chart.
Civil-registry acts in Mexico City by registration year. Counts are lower bounds (names under 6 in a month and borough are removed at source) and count name-instances, not people; compound names are split, so “Maria Jose” counts under each part. 2023, a partial extract through 3 Mar with no cell on record for this name, is excluded. Source: Registro Civil of Mexico City, open data portal, registered given names 2000-2023
New South Wales
outside the top 100
Wesley is not in the 2025 top 100 for New South Wales.
share of that year’s top-100 registrations
New South Wales (not all of Australia) publishes only each year’s 100 most popular names per sex, so a missing year means below that top 100, not rare. Source: NSW Registry of Births, Deaths and Marriages, popular baby names
Puerto Rico
last on record 2015
Wesley is not on the 2025 record for Puerto Rico, which withholds births under 5, and 391 babies have carried the name there since 1998.
share of that year’s births on record
First given name only, from Social Security records of births in Puerto Rico; any name-sex-year under 5 births is withheld at source. Shares divide by the Puerto Rico Demographic Registry’s count of births on the island; the 2025 count is provisional. Source: U.S. Social Security Administration, territory name file (Puerto Rico)
Not on the record in Poland: that registry withholds small counts, so rare uses may sit below its floor.
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 Wesley
Most people given the name Wesley in the United States were born between 1970 and 2019. The Wesley you meet today is most often in his 20s or 30s.
Estimated from US Social Security birth registrations and typical lifespans; a rough guide, not a rule.
Keep exploring
Names like Wesley · Names that go with Wesley · Nicknames for Wesley · Middle names for Wesley · English-Brazilian names
The Wesley deep dive
Whether you’re naming a baby or exploring your own name’s history, this is a personal letter, not a list: where Wesley 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 Wesley fits with your family’s names and surname.
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