The name Finlay is a girl's name meaning "fair-haired hero".

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Finlay is a Scottish royal name (it belonged to Macbeth"s father) that was revived by several celebrity parents who did a gender switch when they used it for their daughters. Angie Harmon and Jason Sehorn, Daniel Baldwin and Lisa Marie Presley all named their daughters Finley. 

This is an interesting name in that different spellings have very different gender divides. The most popular form, Finley, is one of the most truly gender-neutral names today, used for about 1200 baby girls and 1200 boys in the US last year. Finlay, meanwhile, was used for TEN TIMES as many boys as girls, 50 to 5.

Tipping in the girls' direction are Finlee, used for about twice as many girls as boys, and Finleigh, which currently is exclusively female.

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Finlay

The name Finlay peaked for girls at #6361 in 2017. Finlay is occasionally used for boys in 2025.

Finley

The name Finlay is a boy's name of Irish origin meaning "fair-haired hero".

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Finlay is a Scottish royal name: it belonged to Macbeth's father, Finlay MacRory--or Findlaech mac Ruaidri--that has a bit of a split personality. It has two acceptable spellings--Finlay and Finley, the first more popular in its native Scotland, where it ranks in the Top 10, the second in the US. It is also becoming more and more unisex in the States, with the Finley spelling now split between girls and boys, while Finlay was used last year for TEN TIMES as many boys as girls, about 50 to only five.

 Increasingly popular on the celebrity circuit, the splits are evident here too. Amanda Pays and Corbin Bernsen, and Sadie Frost have boys named Finlay, Chris O'Donnell and Holly Marie Combs have sons called Finley, and Lisa Marie Presley, Daniel Baldwin, and Angie Harmon and Jason Sehorn have daughters named Finley; the latter couple were instrumental in making the gender switch in 2003.

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The name Finlay peaked for boys at #2154 in 2015. The name is most popular in Maryland, Massachusetts, and Washington. Finlay is occasionally used for girls in 2025.

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