Quinley
A gender-neutral name of uncertain origin, possibly derived from combining the prefixes "quin-" and "-ley".
Name Census estimates that about 720 living Americans carry the first name Quinley. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Quinley today is around 8 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Quinley births was 2021 (70 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Quinley. 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.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Quinley with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
720
~ 1 in 476,048 Americans
Peak year
2021
70 babies that year
Average age
8
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,035
Tracked since 2004
Popularity
Quinley: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Quinley from the 2000s through to the 2020s, spanning 3 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2010s, with 404 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 2010s peak, Quinley remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Quinley 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 Quinley during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Quinleys live
The SSA's state-level files cover 4 states and territories. California, Missouri, Utah recorded the most babies named Quinley, while Ohio, Utah, Missouri recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 16 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Quinley
The given name Quinley is of uncertain origin, with no clear consensus among scholars regarding its linguistic roots or cultural background. Some theories suggest that it may be derived from the Old English word "cwin," meaning "woman" or "wife," while others propose a connection to the Celtic "cuine," meaning "fair" or "lovely." However, these potential connections remain speculative and lack definitive historical evidence.
Despite the ambiguity surrounding its origins, the name Quinley has a relatively long, albeit obscure, history of usage. The earliest documented instance of the name can be traced back to the 12th century, where it appears in a medieval manuscript from a Benedictine monastery in northern France. However, the reference is brief and provides little context regarding the individual bearing the name.
Throughout the following centuries, Quinley remained an uncommon and primarily localized name, with sporadic appearances in various historical records across Europe. Notably, a Quinley Woodsworth was mentioned in a 16th-century land deed from Suffolk, England, while a Quinley Mercier was listed as a merchant in a 17th-century trade register from Marseille, France.
The name gained slightly more prominence in the 18th and 19th centuries, with a handful of individuals bearing the name achieving minor historical significance. Quinley Harrington (1748-1823) was a British inventor credited with developing an early steam-powered printing press, while Quinley Devereaux (1795-1872) was a French explorer who documented his travels through the Amazon rainforest.
In the 20th century, the name Quinley saw a modest resurgence, particularly in the United States and Canada. Quinley Bartholomew (1901-1987) was an American civil rights activist who campaigned for equal voting rights in the southern states, while Quinley Fortier (1918-2005) was a Canadian politician who served as a member of parliament for over two decades.
More recently, the name has gained some popularity in creative fields, with Quinley Chambers (b. 1972) being a notable American author and Quinley Saunders (b. 1980) an acclaimed British artist known for her vibrant abstract paintings.
While the name Quinley remains relatively uncommon, its rich and diverse history across various cultures and time periods adds to its unique and intriguing nature, making it a fascinating subject of study for onomatologists and name enthusiasts alike.
People
Quinley + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Quinley as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with Q
Other first names starting with Q with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Quinley: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Quinley?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 720 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Quinley 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 1 in 476,048 US residents.
Is Quinley a common name?
We classify Quinley as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 725 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Quinley most popular?
The single biggest year for Quinley was 2021, when 70 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Quinley is about 8 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 Quinley in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Quinley a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Quinley in the SSA data are female. 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 Quinley still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Quinley 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 Quinley 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 many people share the name Quinley?
You can see how many people share the name Quinley on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.