Bentley

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Bentley

Gender: Masculine
Language: English
Etymology:
Bentley comes from an English surname, meaning “Bent Meadow” or “Stiff Meadow” (“bent,” meaning “Course Grass”) from the elements “beonet” (bent, stiff) and “leah” (meadow, clearing).

History:
Bentley is another example of an English surname that can be transferred for use as a first name.

Originally, it would have been bestowed upon sons (very occasionally daughters) as either a first or a middle name in order to honor the Bentley surname. For example, a woman named Mary Bentley who married a man named John Smith, may name her son John Bentley Smith, or merely Bentley Smith. Or a man wishing to honor Judge Thomas Bentley may name his son Thomas Bentley Johnson, or Bentley Johnson.

Unlike other surnames-as-first-names, Bentley has never become common.

Pronunciation: bent-lee.

Diminutives: Ben, Bennie, Benny.

Alternates: Bently, Bintley.

Famous Bearers:
Fictional Characters:
Bentley Drummle (1860)
A villainous nobleman in Charles Dicken’s Great Expectations.

Popularity:
Percentage from the 1990 U.S. Census:
less than 0.004 % of males named Bentley

0.015 % surnamed Bentley

Popularity of Bentley:
Popularity (for newborns):
In the United States...
1880-1889: N/A
1890: 884th most popular.
1891-1960: N/A
1961: 947th most popular.
1962: 926th most popular.
1963-1969: N/A

Selected Sources:
A Dictionary of First Names, Hanks and Hodges, 1990
American Surnames, Smith, 1994
A Dictionary of English Surnames, Reaney and Wilson, 1990
The Penguin Dictionary of First Names, Pickering, 1999

The Social Security Administration Actuarial Note 139 (www.ssa.gov) - For popularity stats 1880-Present
The 1880 U.S. Census- For popularity stats 1850-1880, and other information (it is available on-line at www.familysearch.org)