Hadley
An English surname from place names meaning heather clearing, from Old English haeth and leah. Hemingway's first wife, Hadley Richardson, carried it as a given name.
Hadley in 2025
Hadley was given to 2,266 babies in the United States in 2025, making it the 291st most popular name of the year. That is roughly one in every 1,463 babies born.
The history of Hadley
Hadley reached its highest point in 2014, when 3,060 babies were given the name, ranking 238th that year.
Across the 120 years of records since 1906, 48,691 babies have been named Hadley. Half of them were born before 2016, which places the name's centre of gravity with Generation Alpha.
Hadley has switched sex over its history: it went mostly to boys in its early decades, and goes mostly to girls today.
Hadley by decade
| Decade | Babies named Hadley | Best rank |
|---|---|---|
| 1900s | 36 | 1,640 |
| 1910s | 130 | 2,722 |
| 1920s | 178 | 2,877 |
| 1930s | 134 | 3,361 |
| 1940s | 123 | 3,298 |
| 1950s | 103 | 4,552 |
| 1960s | 131 | 4,266 |
| 1970s | 264 | 3,588 |
| 1980s | 467 | 3,100 |
| 1990s | 1,393 | 1,548 |
| 2000s | 5,322 | 690 |
| 2010s | 25,871 | 238 |
| 2020s | 14,539 | 272 |
Where Hadley is heading
Hadley has fallen 25% over the past decade, from 3,012 babies in 2015 to 2,266 in 2025.
Names like Hadley
Names that rose and fell at the same time as Hadley.