Ridley Family History
Ridley Name Meaning
English: habitational name from any of various places called Ridley (Cheshire Kent Northumberland) or Ridley Hall in Terling (Essex). The Cheshire Kent and Northumberland placenames probably derive from Old English (ge)ryd(d) ‘cleared’ + lēah ‘woodland clearing’. The Essex placename may derive from Old English rēad ‘red’ + lēah. A Northumberland family of this name included Bishop Nicholas Ridley who was burned at the stake in 1555 for refusing to recant his Protestant beliefs. Possibly also an altered form of Swiss German Riedle or Riedler (see Ridler ).
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022