Hailey
A habitational surname from a place name meaning “hay meadow” or “woodland clearing.”
The #4,256 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 37,078 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hailey is generally understood as a surname taken from a place-name, especially Hailey in Oxfordshire. The place-name is usually explained from Old English elements meaning either “hay” and “woodland clearing/glade” or a similar landscape term, giving the sense of a meadow or clearing associated with hay. As with many English locational surnames, it would originally have identified someone who had moved from that place.
History
The historical references point to Hailey as a local surname from Oxfordshire, while also noting that some Haley/Hailey families in other counties may have different origins. The spelling has varied over time, and forms such as Haley and Hayley have often overlapped in records. Because of that overlap, not every modern bearer necessarily descends from the same medieval family.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley specifically treats some Yorkshire Haley families as a separate stock, which is a good reminder that similar spellings do not always share the same origin.
From the historical record
“UDB, (co. Lane), 3 1 Ltverpool, 1. Hole;.— Local, 'of Hailey," a parish in the dioc.of OiTord. Also ' of Haighley,' a parish in the dioc ofNorwich. TheHaleysofcD.York are a different stock, but I cannot identify the locality whence they”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances