Fun Facts About the Name Grantley
- 180 babies named Grantley: U.S. records list 180 babies given the name Grantley from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Grantley Mean?
Grantley is an English habitational name meaning "gravelly clearing," from Old English elements generally identified as grand (gravel) and lēah (wood, woodland clearing). It came into use as a given name through the English surname of the same spelling, which is taken from a place name in Yorkshire rather than from a biblical or classical source.
The second element, lēah, is well attested in English place names, where it refers to a clearing or glade in woodland. The first element is less secure: the usual explanation is a word for gravel or gravelly ground, but some accounts read it as a personal name or as a different Old English word, so the precise original sense of the whole name is not fully settled.
Grantley Name History & Origins
Grantley is a place name and surname from northern England. The village of Grantley lies in North Yorkshire near Ripon, and Grantley Hall stands nearby. The surname also appears elsewhere in England, and it follows the common English pattern of a family name taken from the village or estate where a family lived or held land, a type of surname that became widespread in England after the Norman Conquest.
Its use as a first name belongs to the broader English habit of turning family surnames into given names, a practice that grew common in the 18th and 19th centuries. In Britain the name is associated with the writer and sportsman Grantley Berkeley (1800 - 1881), a son of the 5th Earl of Berkeley. In the English-speaking Caribbean it is best known through Sir Grantley Adams (1898 - 1971), a Barbadian politician and the first Premier of Barbados, for whom the country's international airport is named. The given name remains uncommon and is used mainly in Britain, the Caribbean, and other English-speaking countries.
How Popular is the Name Grantley?
Grantley 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 2014. Its best rank was #5,823 in 2014.
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 | #7,857 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2024 | #5,976 | 15 | 0.0009% |
| 2023 | #12,859 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2022 | #7,430 | 11 | 0.0006% |
| 2021 | #7,786 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2020 | #6,413 | 13 | 0.0008% |
| 2019 | #7,831 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2018 | #7,794 | 10 | 0.0006% |
| 2017 | #6,142 | 14 | 0.0008% |
| 2016 | #6,141 | 14 | 0.0007% |
| 2015 | #6,456 | 13 | 0.0007% |
| 2014 | #5,823 | 15 | 0.0008% |
| 2013 | #12,787 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2012 | #9,158 | 8 | 0.0004% |
| 2011 | #9,989 | 7 | 0.0004% |
| 2003 | #11,495 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 2000 | #10,988 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1984 | #6,686 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1982 | #6,713 | 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.
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How the Name Grantley Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are introspective, prophetic, philosophical, and soul searching, but also can be analytical, critical and opinionated. You think deeply and clearly, have an air of mystery, can be solitary and secretive. You are bold, independent, inquisitive and interested in research. You know what you want and why you want it.
Creative and outgoing, you are always looking for an opportunity to show your abilities, especially before audience. You are very flexible and like to feel appreciated. You are looking for chances to mix with others socially and to communicate your ideas. You like to talk and can easily relate to different cultures and concepts. The biggest challenge for you is uncertainty. Easily getting bored, you can move from one job to another, switch projects and lovers. The high creative force can lead you either to happiness or unhappiness. If you understand your goals, if you can make major decisions in life and follow it directly and straight up without worry and uncertainty, you are able to achieve great heights.
✦ Grantley's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Grantley's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.