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Hayley
What do you think of Hayley? I really love this name, but only spelled Hayley. I dislike Hailey, which unfortunately is the most popular spelling by far. Haley is alright but I don't like any other spellings.Would it get spelled Hailey a lot? How many do you know and how do they spell it? Do you think it's too common? If you heard it, what would be your first assumption as how to spell it?Do you know whether Hayley is the original? I think so, but some people say it's Haley. Someone once found a popularity list from England that was really old and Hayley was used there but I heard Haley was first used in the US (according to the lists on this site Haley was in the top 1000 in 1974 while Hayley followed in 1977, but Hayley Mills was born even before then, named after her mom's maiden name). I'd love to find out if anyone happens to know anything.If you had to choose: Hayley or Kayley and why?What is your favorite spelling of Hayley and Kayley?

This message was edited 8/26/2011, 4:51 AM

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I never assume how to spell Hayley, although in my mind I always see Hailey as that is my favourite spelling. My niece's name is Haileigh, and her name is forever spelt wrong.In her class (she was in senior kindergarten), there is herself and a Hailey.I couldn't choose between Hayley and Kayley, personally, as that's my niece's name, and also, my son's name is Casey and I think Casey and Kayley are far too close. Having said that, Kaley would be my first choice.My favourite spellings are Hailey and Kaley.
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I like it despite the fact that it doesn't fit in with most of the other names I like. Hailey is my preferred spelling, then Hayley. I have only ever met one, spelled Hailey, so I don't think it's actually very common at all in my area.I would choose Hayley over Kayley any day. Hayley looks and sounds like a legitimate name to me, while Kayley appears made up and trendy.
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Hayley is all right. I've always thought of it as a friendly sort of name. I feel like I've encountered a lot of girls with the name, most spelled Hailey, Hayley, or Hayleigh. I think it would be spelled Hailey some, but I think many people know there are multiple spellings and will ask before assuming anything. I've always thought Hayley was the original, but that's more because I think of Hayley Mills bringing the name to everyone's attention rather than any real Hayley knowledge on my part. I'd pick Hayley over Kayley. Hayley sounds more "nameish" to me. I also think it matures better than Kayley.I see different words at the beginning of of the different spellings.
Hayley = Hay (animal feed)
Hailey = Hail (weather condition)
Haley = Hale (healthy/strong)
"Hale" is definitely my favorite, so I like Haley the best. I also think it's the sleekest and most elegant of the three.
For the other, I'd pick Kaylee. I don't like the name, but I have a positive association with this spelling.
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I always feel like something is missing in Haley.
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I think the sound of Hayley is lovely. It's not really my type of name at all, but saying it just sounds nice. I don't think it matters which spelling is the "original"-- there are so many spellings out there that no matter what the spelling is, a Haley will have to spell her name out loud whether it's Hayley, Haley,or Haielleighh. I like Hayley better than Kayley, and I like Hayley much better than Haley. Haylee looks like /HAY lee/ which I like better than /HALE ee/, which is what Haley looks like.
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I don't even hear a difference between HAY-lee and HALE-ee because I say it fast. But I say them all more like HAY-lee.
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I like the name, but I know a lot of girls named Haley so it seems kind of boring. I think Haley is the most common spelling, but I prefer Hayley. I've never known it spelled Hailey, actually - as I said, I would be most likely to assume it was spelled Haley, then Hayley.If I had to choose between Hayley and Kayley, I would choose Hayley. Kayley is very little-girl to me. My favorite spelling of Kayley is definitely Kailey, but the most common spelling I've seen is Kaylie.

This message was edited 8/26/2011, 3:54 PM

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Actually, if you look at popularities, it's Hailey that makes the top 20 list in the States... though the others have some popularity too... may just vary from place to place what's most common.
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I really don't care one way or the other for this name. I haven't seen too many of this triad of name spellings. Apparently, quite common in certain areas however.
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I hate it. Sorry. :( It's just so trendy sounding and seems dated. Haley is the best spelling, in my opinion. It looks the nicest and the neatest. I do think it's pretty common. I knew a lot when I was in high school. I don't remember how they spelled it, because it was just such a boring name to me that I didn't bother remembering. I'd choose neither. They're both awful. :/ Haley and Kaley. Simple and sweet.
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I like it and I like the spelling Hailey, Haley and Hayley. I also like Haley on a boy, but I guess it's a GP. If I met someone with this name and didn't know how she spelled it, I would probably spell it Hailey. I dunno, it's just eh spelling I'm most used to (ie the spelling I liked first). Between Hayley and Kayley, I would go with Hayley. Less popular and I get certain vibes from Kayley. Don't get me wrong, I like Kailey (with this spelling) but Kayley / Kailey has a very modern sound and thus I wouldn't spell it with two Y's, too.
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I know quite a few, and they all spell it different ways. Honestly, I don't write their name down publically (for more eyes than my own) without double checking because I always spell it wrong. People may assume it's one way or the other based on how much they know - if they've only known Haley, that's how they will spell it. If they know there are many variations, they may ask.I perfer the Kay- sound over the Hay- sound so I have to say Kayley. But I don't have a favorite spelling
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I don't like Hayley. It was quite trendy here in the UK some years ago.I prefer Hayley to Kayley, it at least feels like a 'genuine' name.
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I love HayleyI love the spelling Hayley but for some reason I also dislike Hailey.
If I met a Hayley I would ask how you spell it but I would hop eit would be Hayley. I don't know any Hayley. I don't think it's common.I would deffinatly choose Hayley over Kayley becuase I know so many KayleysFavorite spelling: Hayley and Kayleigh.
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Very common actually... just depends where you are. (see posts below)
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I really like it despite it being too popular for me. I also like Hailey. Haley is decent, but I've never cared for that spelling all that much for some reason. It's probably because I used to know a Haley whose name was confused with Hallie. That didn't happen too often, though.From what I've read, Hayley is the original.Between Hayley and Kayley, I prefer Hayley. It sounds more substantial.I like Hailey the best followed by Hayley.Off the top of my head, I can think of two Haleys I've met and one Hayley. I've encountered little girls with the name, but I don't know how they spelled it since I only heard them being called Hayley / Haley / Hailey, etc. and they weren't people I actually knew. I've also seen the name online quite a bit.
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You're right, Haley might get pronounced like Hallie. Another reason to prefer Hayley. For some reason I just love the double Ys.
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I suspect from its etimology that Hayley would be the original... esp. since others are listed as variants of it... I kind of prefer Hailey because of the 2 ys so close together thing... Was fiddling around w/ it for kanji purposes and came up w/ Heili 平里 or Heiri in actual Jpns. transliteration since they don't differentiate between r and l in Jpns... Winds up being peace and village in kanji which I find to be a deeper meaning than the original... I like it ok on someone else's kid... w/ Azusa as a mn. I do think for everyone's sake though, it would be better spelled Hailey or Hayley in En.I do prefer Hayley to Kaylee simply because Hayley feels more like a real solid name and Kaylee feels more like a trendy preppy name.

This message was edited 8/26/2011, 5:45 AM

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Ohh that meaning is beautiful!
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yes, it isI would pick that any day over "hay clearing"
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I do like Hayley and this is my favorite spelling. I've met two Haleys and one Hailey. But this is over years and not all from one area so I don't see it as common. I'd want to spell it Hayley right away but I'd probably ask or spell it Haley first. I think Hayley is the orignial though. I like Hayley better but I'm not sure why. It's close. I spell Kaylee first as it is my favorite. Kailey is okay. Kayley and Kaley look awkward to me.
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Hayley is alright. I used to really love it before I started seeing tons of people named Hayley, Kaylee, Bailey etc. I'm sure someone out there will assume it's spelt Hailey. If I met someone named Hayley, I wouldn't even assume. My first instinct would be "Ok, how do you spell it?" I might lean towards Hayley though. It is fairly common, but I don't think it's too, too common. I know three girls named Hayley: two spell it Hailey, and one spells it Hayley. Hayley is the original. It comes from a surname that loosely means "hay clearing", hence the "hay" part, I assume. It's the same with the name Hayden.I would pick Hayley over Kayley, hands down. "K" names always look too cutesy to me. I'm not sure why. Plus, I just like the softness of "H". Hmmm... Hayley is the original, but I think I prefer Haley. I also prefer Caley or Kaley. They just look cleaner to me.

This message was edited 8/26/2011, 5:37 AM

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It's in the top 20 for the Hailey spelling alone... and Haley and Hayley also find their way into the stats, though not as high, so w/ combined spellings, it's quite common... but not as bad as Lily, Sophia and a few others.
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Ok?I said it was common.Where I live right now, it's not common at all.

This message was edited 8/26/2011, 5:55 AM

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I think it's at number 12, combining all spellings, according Norah's list.
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I don't like Hayley, Hailey, Hailee etc. but I like Haley. I think it's more elegant than the other variants.How others might spell it depends on other Hayley's they know and which spelling is more common in their area. Hailey is the most common spelling but many Haileys will have their name spelled Hayley or Haleigh. I don't personally know anyone named Hayley or any of it's variants.I'd choose Hayley over Kayley because I don't really like "K".Haley & Caelie. Caelie would be a cute nickname for a Calliope or a Callista/Calista.
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