# Shelley (name)

Shelley is a given name and surname. In many baby name books, Shelley is listed as meaning 'meadow's edge' or 'clearing on a bank'. It is Old English in origin. As with many other names (Courtney, Ashley, etc.), Shelley is today a name given almost exclusively to girls after historically being male. It is commonly used as a nickname for Michelle (and formerly as a variant of Shirley). Shelley is also a transferred surname used by those in Essex, Suffolk and Yorkshire, particularly in settlements where a wood/clearing was beside a ledge or hillside. Shelly is a common alternative spelling. It is featured in tile on the ceiling of the Library of Congress in Washington D.C.
Notable people with the name include:

## Surname

* Adolphus Edward Shelley (1812–1854), the first Auditor-General in British Hong Kong
* Alex Shelley (born 1983), stage name of American wrestler Patrick Martin
* Alexander Shelley (born 1979), English conductor
* Arthur Shelley (fl.1905), British footballer
* Barbara Shelley (1932–2021), English actress
* Bert Shelley (1899–1971), English footballer
* Brian Shelley (born 1981), Irish footballer
* Burke Shelley (1950-2022), Welsh musician, member of rock group Budgie
* Sir Bysshe Shelley, 1st Baronet (1731–1815), grandfather of Percy Bysshe Shelley
* Carla Shelley (born 1965), film producer
* Carole Shelley (1939–2018), English actress
* Cindy Shelley (born 1960), British actress
* Danny Shelley (born 1990), English footballer
* David Shelley (1957–2015), American blues rock musician
* David Shelley (publisher) (born 1976), British book publisher
* Deck Shelley (1906–1968), American football player
* Duke Shelley (born 1996), American football player
* Elbert Shelley (born 1964), American football player
* Sir Frederic Shelley, 8th Baronet (1809–1869), cleric and landowner
* George Shelley (singer) (born 1993), English singer, member of group Union J
* George Ernest Shelley (1840–1910), English geologist and ornithologist
* George M. Shelley (1849–1927), Mayor of Kansas City, Missouri
* Gerard Shelley (1891–1980), British linguist, author and translator
* Gladys Shelley (1911–2003), American lyricist and composer
* Harry Rowe Shelley (1858–1947), American composer
* Howard Shelley (born 1950), British pianist and conductor
* Hugh Shelley (1910–1978), American baseball player of the 1930s and 1940s
* Jack Shelley (footballer) (1905–1979), Australian footballer
* James Shelley (1884–1961), New Zealand university professor
* Jaz Shelley (born 2000), Australian basketball player
* Jeremy Shelley (born 1990), American football placekicker
* Jim Shelley (disambiguation), multiple people
* Jody Shelley (born 1976), Canadian ice hockey player
* Joe Shelley (1892–1966), Australian footballer
* John Shelley (disambiguation), multiple people
* Joshua Shelley (1920–1990), American actor
* Kate Shelley (1863–1912), Irish-born US railroad heroine
* Kenneth Shelley (born 1951), American figure skater
* Kevin Shelley (born 1955), American politician
* Lee Shelley (born 1956), American fencer
* Lilian Shelley (1892–c.1933), English music hall entertainer
* Louise Shelley (born 1952), American university professor
* Martha Shelley (born 1943), American writer
* Mary Shelley (1797–1851), English writer, author of the novel Frankenstein
* Mary Michael Shelley (born 1950), American folk artist
* Michael Shelley (disambiguation), multiple people
* Nancy Shelley (died 2010), Australian peace activist
* Norman Shelley (1903–1980), English actor
* Paul Shelley (born 1942), English actor
* Paul Shelley (politician) (born 1959), Canadian politician
* Percy Shelley (potter) (1860–1937), English potter
* Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822), English poet, husband of Mary Shelley
* Sir Percy Shelley, 3rd Baronet (1819–1889), son of Percy Bysshe Shelley and Mary Shelley
* Pete Shelley (1955–2018), English musician, lead singer of Buzzcocks
* Peter Shelley (1943–2023), British 1970s pop singer
* Rachel Shelley (born 1969), English actress
* Rebecca Shelley (1887–1984), American pacifist
* Rex Shelley (1930–2009), Eurasian Singaporean author
* Richard Shelley (died c.1586), English Catholic under Elizabeth I
* Richard Shelley (grand prior) (c.1513–c.1589), English diplomat
* Rick Shelley (1947–2001), American science fiction writer
* Ronald G. Shelley (1932–2003), philatelist
* Samuel Shelley (1750–1808), English miniaturist and water-colour painter
* Sir Sidney Shelley, 8th Baronet (1880–1965), relative of Percy Bysshe Shelley
* Steve Shelley (born 1962), American drummer, member of group Sonic Youth
* Timothy Shelley (1753–1844), English politician, father of Percy Bysshe Shelley
* Walter Shelley, 17th-century politician, colonist of Jamestown, Virginia
* Wanda Shelley (born 1969), American television producer
* Sir William Shelley (c.1480–1549), English judge
* Shelley baronets

## Given name
### Women

* Shelley Ackerman (1953–2020), American astrologer, writer, actress, and singer
* Shelley Andrews (born 1953), Canadian field hockey player
* Shelley Anna, American chemical engineer
* Shelley Archer (born 1958), Australian politician
* Shelley Beattie (1967–2008), American professional female bodybuilder and actress
* Shelley Bennett, American actress, producer, and artist
* Shelley Berger, American professor
* Rochelle Shelley Berkley (born 1951), American businesswoman, politician, and attorney
* Shelley Blond (born 1970), English actress
* Shelley-Ann Brown (born 1980), Canadian bobsledder
* Shelley Chaplin (born 1984), Australian wheelchair basketball player
* Shelley Duvall (1949–2024), American actress
* Michele Shelley Fabares (born 1944), American singer and actress
* Michelle Shelley Fruin (born 1961), New Zealand cricketer
* Michelle Shelley Funke Frommeyer (born 1969), American politician
* Shelley Griffiths, New Zealand academic
* Shelley Hack (born 1947), American model and actress
* Michelle Shelley Hadfield, New Zealand paralympian
* Shelley Hennig (born 1987), American actress
* Shelley Jackson (born 1963), American writer and artist
* Michelle Shelley Kerr (born 1969), Scottish football manager
* Shelley Long (born 1949), American actress
* Shelley Parker-Chan, Australian fantasy novelist
* Shelley Ross, American television executive producer
* Shelley Rudman (born 1981), British athlete
* Shelley Rudnicki, American politician
* Shelley Sandie (born 1969), Australian basketball player
* Rachelle Shelley Shannon (born 1956), American anti-abortion extremist
* Shelley Smith (disambiguation), multiple people
* Rochelle Shelley Solomon (1963–2014), American professional tennis player
* Shelley Steiner (born 1961), Canadian Olympic fencer
* Shelley Tanaka, Canadian author and editor
* Shelley Tepperman, Canadian translator
* Rochelle Shelley Vana (born 1951), American politician
* Shelley Vance, American politician
* Michelle Shelley Williams-Walker, British politician
* Shelley Winters (1920–2006), American actress

### Men

* Shelley Appleton (1919–2005), American trade union executive and attorney
* Sheldon Shelley Berman (1925–2017), American comedian and actor
* Shelley Duncan (born 1979), American professional baseball player
* Shelley Hull (1884–1919), American actor
* Shelley Jensen, American television director and producer
* Shelley Malil (born 1984), Indian-American actor
* Shelley Mayfield (1924–2010), American golf course architect and professional golfer
* Shelley Massenburg-Smith (born 1988), American rapper, singer, and record producer
* I. Sheldon Shelley Posen, Canadian folklorist, singer, and songwriter
* Shelley Scarlett, 5th Baron Abinger (1872–1917), British peer and military officer
* Shelley Smith (disambiguation), multiple people
* Shelton Shelley Wickramasinghe (1926–2011), Sri Lankan cricketer

## Code name

* F. F. E. Yeo-Thomas, S.O.E. operative who had "SHELLEY" as a code name during World War II

## Fictional characters

* James Shelley, the title character of Shelley (TV series)
* Shelley Levene, a main character in the stage play Glengarry Glen Ross, and the 1992 film of the same name
* Shelley Marsh, a secondary character on the Comedy Central show South Park
* Shelley Simon, One Tree Hill character
* Shelley Unwin, a character in the British TV series Coronation Street
* Shelley Winters, a main character in the popular webcomic Scary Go Round
* Shelly Johnson, one of the main characters in Twin Peaks
* Nathan Shelley, a main character in the Apple TV series Ted Lasso

## Animals

* Shelley (tortoise), a tortoise on Blue Peter