Hailey

Hailey meaning

Hailey is an international girl's name of Old English origin (surname from a place name).

Hay clearing (Old English hīg 'hay' + lēah 'clearing')

Also used to mean: hay meadow, hero

Hailey is one spelling of Haley or Hayley, an English surname that comes from places such as Hailey in Oxfordshire, recorded as Hayle in the thirteenth century. The English Place-Name Society explains it from two Old English words: hīg, which Bosworth-Toller's dictionary gives as hay or mown grass, and lēah, a woodland clearing or meadow. So the name means a clearing where hay was made, a "hay meadow". Some name lists add meanings such as "hero", which have no basis in the place name. It is easy to say in Indian languages and pairs well with most surnames.

Source: English Place-Name Society, Survey of English Place-Names (Oxfordshire), s.v. Hailey · entry Hailey · See the entry · checked 25 Oct 2026

References: English Place-Name Society, Hailey (Oxfordshire) · Bosworth-Toller, híg · Bosworth-Toller, leáh

Popularity abroad

• #104 United States, girls 2025 (down 4 from 100 in 2024)
  US Social Security Administration
• #371 England and Wales, girls 2025
  Office for National Statistics

Official birth registrations. India publishes no national name statistics.

Spellings

Hailey · Hayley · Haley · Haylee

Related names

Also meaning nature

Also starting with Hai-

More names of English origin

Browse more like this