Burnley
From the Old English word "burna" meaning small stream, and "leah" meaning meadow.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Burnley. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Burnley today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Burnley births was 1919 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Burnley. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Burnley. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1919
6 babies that year
Average age
-
1927 SSA rank
#4,280
Tracked since 1919
Popularity
Burnley: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Burnley from the 1910s through to the 1920s, spanning 2 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 6 total registrations. The name continues to be given at rates close to its all-time high, suggesting it has not yet fallen out of fashion.
Babies born per year
Decades
Burnley by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Burnley during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Burnley
The name Burnley is an English place name derived from the town of Burnley in Lancashire, England. The name likely originates from the Old English words "burna" meaning stream and "leah" meaning a meadow or clearing, referencing the town's location near a stream in a clearing.
While the name Burnley is not directly referenced in ancient texts or religious scriptures, it has been used as a given name since the late 19th century, possibly influenced by the growing prominence of the town during the Industrial Revolution. One of the earliest recorded examples of the name is Burnley Graham, a British actor born in 1884 who appeared in several silent films in the early 20th century.
Another notable figure named Burnley was Burnley Terrell, an American musician and songwriter born in 1908. He was best known for his work with the Memphis Jug Band and is considered a pioneer of the Memphis blues sound.
In the field of sports, Burnley Mitchell was a professional baseball player from the United States who played in the Negro Leagues during the 1920s and 1930s. He was known for his exceptional batting skills and was inducted into the Negro Leagues Baseball Museum's Hall of Fame in 1975.
Burnley Muton was a British artist and printmaker active in the mid-20th century. He was particularly renowned for his etchings and woodcuts, which often depicted rural landscapes and scenes from everyday life. His work is held in numerous public collections, including the Victoria and Albert Museum in London.
Finally, Burnley Watkins was an American author and journalist born in 1935. He wrote several critically acclaimed novels and non-fiction works, including "The Lights of Home," a memoir about his childhood in the American South. Watkins received numerous literary awards and accolades throughout his career.
People
Burnley + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Burnley as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with B
Other first names starting with B with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Burnley: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Burnley?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Burnley going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Burnley a common name?
We classify Burnley as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 11 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Burnley most popular?
The single biggest year for Burnley was 1919, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Burnley is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Burnley in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Burnley a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Burnley in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Burnley still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Burnley in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Burnley can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Burnley?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Burnley on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.