As a Canadian man who has worn this name for 33 years I can tell you, I love it, my whole life I've had to correct the spelling (even with family on Xmas cards), I haven't met many other Reillys with the spelling (mostly meet Rileys), I love the uniqueness of it. I wouldn't have it any other way. Happy to be Reilly.
I thought Riley was the original spelling, Reilly seems more unique and kri8tive in my opinion. Reiley is actually the most rare spelling! Even if Reilly is the original spelling, it’s not as popular as Riley.
So ugly! Why do so many people name their little girls Reilly, Riley, Ryleigh, et cetera? The meaning of the name is unknown, so it has no value, and the name sounds like an old Irish man. For a boy, it makes no sense to use this name because it has no meaning. It's not nice-sounding at all. This is one of the worst names you could give a baby girl.
― Anonymous User 4/27/2016
-1
I much prefer this spelling to "Riley," and still like it for boys.
I LOVE this name, especially for a girl. It is so fresh and interesting, a much better version of "Riley"... the only downside is no one will know how to spell your name, but I think it has a beautiful, unique quality. I would way rather be named Reilly then something overused and boring such as Emma or Natalie.
― Anonymous User 10/23/2011
-4
After the Reilly clan consolidated its hold on County Cavan, they minted their own money, accepted as legal tender even in England. These coins, called “O'Reillys” and “Reilly's, ” became synonymous with a monied person, and a gentleman freely spending was “living on his Reillys.”Hence the saying: "To live the life of Reilly or the life of O'Reilly".
"Reilly, Ace of Spies" is a 1983 British television miniseries dramatising the life of Sidney Reilly, a Russian Jew who became one of the greatest spies to ever work for the British. Among his exploits in the early 20th century were the infiltration of the German General Staff in 1917 and a near-overthrow of the Bolsheviks in 1918. His reputation with women was as legendary as his genius for espionage.