Ashley

Meaning

Ashley comes from Old English elements usually taken as æsc, meaning “ash tree,” and lēah, meaning “wood,” “clearing,” or “meadow.” As a surname and place name, it referred to someone from a place by ash trees or in an ash-tree clearing; it later became a given name. In modern use it is common for all genders, though it has been especially popular as a feminine name in recent decades.

Origin

Fun fact

Ashley was long used mainly as a surname and masculine given name before it became especially popular for girls in the 20th century.