Ridley
An English surname from places named for a red or reed-covered clearing, especially in northern England.
The #3,133 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 26,799 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Ridley is generally an English habitational surname, taken from one or more places called Ridley. The name is usually explained as meaning either “red lea” or “reed lea”: Old English rēad, “red,” or hrēod, “reed,” plus lēah, a clearing, meadow, or woodland glade. The surname could also reflect Ridlington in some cases, but the clearest and most common explanation is from a place-name with -ley.
History
The name is well established in England, especially in northern and eastern counties, and it appears in historical records in several spellings. It is also associated with the notable Bishop Nicholas Ridley of the Reformation era, which helped make the surname familiar in English history. Later bearers spread the name to London and overseas, including North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some nineteenth-century writers debated whether the first element meant “red” or “reed,” so the surname may preserve either a colorful landscape feature or a wet, reedy one.
From the historical record
“RIDLER = Riddler, q.v. RIDLEY (Eng.) Bel. to Ridley; or Dweller at I the Red Lea [Dial. E. rid(e, red ; O.E. r^ad + M.E. ley, O.E. l^ah, a meadow] 2 the Reedy Lea [O.E. hr^od, a reed -|- l^ah] Ridlington”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)