Name of the Week

^.


Preppy surname with a hit of cowboy
and a big dollop of Hollywood.

 

Origin:

Bradley is adopted from the English toponymic surname and derived from a number of villages named Bradley. It is composed of the Old English words brad "broad, flat, open, extended," and leah "open field, meadow, piece of untilled ground."

Usage:

As a first name, Bradley has been in use in Britain since the 17th century. In most cases it was used because it was the surname of a family member or, most often, a godparent. Because Bradley is such a common surname, Bradley fared moderately well as a first name through the 18th and 19th century. From 1838 to 1900 in England and Wales, Bradley had a mean average of 5 birth registrations every year. Charles Dickens even used it as a name for a character in Our Mutual Friend in 1864.  For centuries, Bradley mulled along with moderately low but consistant usage in Britain. Its fortunes began to change in the 1950s, rising to around 50 registrations per year, thanks undoubtedly to influence from America where Bradley was a rising fashionable favourite. It had gained much favour there post-WWII thanks to general Omar Nelson Bradley, known as Brad.  Bradley reached the top 100 in the US in 1960 at #90 -- Brad alone was #134 that year -- and stayed there until 1998.  As this American influence began to spread across Britain, Bradley grew ever more popular. It finally cracked the top 100 in England and Wales in 1984 when it debued at #92. Ten years on, it had been increasing apace to #34 in 1994. There it stayed in the top 50 until 2006, after which it declined rapidly, reaching #100 in 2010.  In 2013, Bradley ranked #117 in England and Wales with 510 births. In Scotland, it ranked #150 with 38 births and in Northern Ireland, it ranked #231 with 8 births.

Famous Bearers:

History: * Francis Herbert Bradley (1846–1924), English philosopher. * Bradley Allen Fiske (1854–1942), American naval officer and inventor. * Omar Nelson "Brad" Bradley (1893–1981), U.S. general. * Bradley Walker Tomlin (1899–1953), American painter. Contemporary: * William Bradley "Brad" Pitt (born 1963), American actor. * Bradley Cooper (born 1975), American actor. * Bradley Wiggins (born 1980), British professional cyclist. * Bradley James (born 1983), British actor. Literature and Other Media: * Bradley Headstone, a character in Charles Dickens' Our Mutual Friend (1864/5)

Variants:

Bradlee, Bradleigh, Bradly

Pronunciation:

BRAD-lee [key]

Possible diminutives:

Brad, Lee

Sibling Names:

Holly     Megan     Caitlin     Amber     Erin     Nicole  Corey     Layton     Harrison     Tyler     Sean     Mason

Name Lists:

Dickensian Names

 

If you like Bradley you may also like:   Bailey, Kyle, Brodie, Oakley, Blakeley, Hayden, Brandon, Riley, Brogan, Kieran

 

Thanks to Chantelle for requesting this post.