Riley (given name)

This article is about the given name "Riley". For the surname, see Riley (surname). For other uses, see Riley (disambiguation).
Riley
Pronunciation/ˈraɪli/ RY-lee
GenderUnisex
Origin
Language(s)Old English, Irish
Other names
Related namesReilly, Rileigh, Rylee, Ryleigh, Rylie

Riley is a transferred use of an English surname derived from Old English ryge ‘rye’ + lēah ‘wood’, ‘clearing’.[1] [2]

It is also derived from the Irish surname O'Reilly, [3] which originated from the Irish name Raghallach, of unknown meaning. [4]

  1. ^ "Riley - given name origin".
  2. ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 231. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.
  3. ^ Cite error: The named reference Bardsley was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  4. ^ Hanks, Patrick; Hardcastle, Kate; Hodges, Flavia (2006). Oxford Dictionary of First Names. Oxford University Press. p. 231. ISBN 0-19-861060-2.