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Paisley

PAYZ-lee
Scottish
"church, cemetery"
Linda Rosenkrantz
By Linda Rosenkrantz
Updated Wed Oct 01 2025

Paisley Origin and Meaning

The name Paisley is a girl's name of Scottish origin meaning "church, cemetery".

For a name related to a Scottish town, a patterned Indian fabric, and a country singer named Brad, Paisley has seen remarkable success. After appearing, seemingly out of nowhere, it is now an American favorite.

Deriving from a Scottish surname and town near Glasglow, Paisley means "church" or "cemetery." It has been given to a tiny handful of girls each year since the 1960s, but it wasn't until the late 2000s that it had any significant usage. Then, between 2010 and 2015, the number of girls named Paisley quadrupled, and it entered the US Top 50.

So what did make Paisley so popular? Perhaps parents drew inspiration from the American country singer, Brad Paisley, who has dueted with Dolly. Maybe the 2009 appearance of 'Peppermint Paisley' on the controversial TV show "Toddlers and Tiaras" turned some heads?

Or perhaps it simply emerged as a fresh spin on both Ashley and Paige, the once popular choices that were falling rapidly out of style?

However it made its way to the charts, Paisley remains in the US Top 100 and is given to over 3500 girls each year. Athlete Jennie Finch, Guns N' Roses musician Richard Fortus, and actress Gabrielle Anwar are among those who have chosen Paisley for their daughters.

Nameberry users tend not to share this love of Paisley and it ranks on the fringes of the Nameberry Top 1000. For more 'Berry-style' choices, you could try Maisie, Daisy, Astrid, Romy, Blair or Marlowe.

# 61 in the US

Paisley Rank in US Top 1000

# 463 on Nameberry

Paisley Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Popularity of the name Paisley

20 Names Similar to Paisley

These 20 names were selected by our users that were looking for other names like Paisley.

Famous People Named Paisley

  • Paisley
    former ring name of Sharmell Sullivan,Huffman, American pro wrestler
  • Paisley Dickey
    American child beauty queen on TV's "Toddlers & Tiaras"
  • Paisley Verea (b. 2004)
    daughter of actress Gabrielle Anwar
  • Paisley Piper Fortus (b. 2005)
    daughter of musician Richard Fortus of Guns 'n' Roses
  • Paisley Bamford (b. 2007)
    daughter of singer Gord Bamford
  • Paisley McKnight (b. 2011)
    daughter of Mindy from CuteGirlsHairstyles
  • Paisley Faye Daigle (b. 2013)
    daughter of athletes Jennie Finch and Casey Daigle
  • Kimberly Payne Williams
    Paisley, American actress

The name Paisley in Pop Culture

  • Paisley Houndstooth
    character in Disney TV series "ANT Farm"
  • Paisley
    character in "The Secret Language of Girls"
  • Duchess of Paisley
    "Lord Arthur Savile's Crime" (1891) by Oscar Wilde
  • Paisley
    town in Renfrewshire, southwest Scotland, that is the namesake of the fabric, as it was the only merchant town in the West that imported it from India. The town name means "place with a church" (ultimately from Latin basilica).
  • Paisley Park
    record label and private estate of musician Prince in Chanhassen, MN, where he recorded and produced most of his songs.

The name Paisley in Nameberry Blog Posts