Fun Facts About the Name Beckley
- 133 babies named Beckley: U.S. records list 133 babies given the name Beckley from 1880 through 2025. Even 5 boys received the name Beckley - about 1 boy for every 26 girls.
What Does the Name Beckley Mean?
Beckley is an English name usually explained as meaning "Becca's woodland clearing" or "clearing in the woods." It comes from Old English: the personal name Becca joined to lēah, a word for a clearing, glade, or open meadow in woodland. That same lēah element lies behind the -ley ending of many English place names and surnames.
An older alternative reads the first element as Old English bece or bæce, meaning "stream" or "brook," which would give "clearing by a stream." Because the two first elements could be written alike in medieval spelling, the exact sense is not fully settled; the -ley part is not in doubt.
Beckley Name History & Origins
Beckley is a habitational surname, meaning it was taken from one or more places in England bearing the name. Villages called Beckley stand in Oxfordshire, near Otmoor, and in East Sussex, near Rye. In the Middle Ages, English families frequently took their surname from the village they came from, so a person who had moved away from a Beckley could be recorded as "of Beckley," and that description eventually hardened into a fixed family name.
The place name itself reaches back to the Old English period, before the Norman Conquest, when settlements were commonly named from a personal name or a natural feature plus a word for the kind of land involved. A lēah was a clearing in the woods, often used as pasture or for a small farm, and over the centuries the word was worn down to -ley in names. The spelling of the individual villages shifted in medieval records before settling into the modern form.
With English migration the surname was carried to North America and elsewhere, and it also stands in overseas place names such as Beckley, West Virginia. As a first name, Beckley is uncommon and relatively recent, following the broad American habit of using surnames as given names.
How Popular is the Name Beckley?
Beckley has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 2020. Its best rank was #5,886 in 2020.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | #9,545 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #8,502 | 12 | 0.0007% |
| 2023 | #7,298 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2022 | #12,436 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2021 | #7,008 | 16 | 0.0010% |
| 2020 | #5,886 | 20 | 0.0012% |
| 2019 | #7,796 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2018 | #9,931 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #14,404 | 6 | 0.0003% |
| 2016 | #11,954 | 8 | 0.0005% |
| 2015 | #10,258 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | #12,296 | 5 | 0.0003% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Explore More Lists with Name Beckley
Most Popular Girl Names That Start with B
How the Name Beckley Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You can go to great heights and equally great depths. You are emotional and fixed in your opinions. You are hospitable, sentimental, often psychic, sometimes moody. You are ruled by love and the lack of it and feel a need to be encouraged and appreciated. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
You desire to inspire and lead, to control other's affairs. You are giving, courageous and bold, action oriented,energetic and strong willed. You want to make a difference in the world, and this attitude often attracts you to cultural interests, politics, social issues, and the cultivation of your creative talents.
✦ Beckley's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Beckley's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.