Shirley

Revision History

loadingDate    Editor    Change Summary
12/1/2024, 10:33 PM Mike C update #117
1/21/2022, 9:40 PM Mike C update #111
2/4/2020, 9:06 PM Mike C update #107
11/16/2019, 11:04 AM Mike C update #105
6/13/2019, 12:17 AM Mike C update #104
10/20/2016, 1:17 AM Mike C update #93
2/12/2007, 1:03 AM Mike C earliest recorded revision

Gender Feminine & Masculine
Usage English
Pronounced Pron. /ˈʃɜɹ.li/(American English) /ˈʃɜː.li/(British English)

Meaning & History

From an English surname that was originally derived from a place name meaning "bright clearing" in Old English. This is the name of a main character in Charlotte Brontë's semi-autobiographical novel Shirley (1849). Though the name was already popular in the United States, the child actress Shirley Temple (1928-2014) gave it a further boost. By 1935 it was the second most common name for girls.