Holley is an English surname. It is either locational, ultimately derived an Old English hol lēah "[dwelling by] the clearing by the hollow", or descriptive, from hol-ēage "hollow-eyed". A masculine given name Hollie was derived from the surname, recorded in the United States for the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Notable people with the surname include:
Addison Holley, actressAlexander H. Holley, a Governor of ConnecticutAlexander Lyman Holley, mechanical engineerCharles Hardin Holley, real name of singer Buddy HollyGeorge Holley (1885–1942), England international footballerHorace Holley (1781-1827), Unitarian minister and president of Transylvania UniversityHorace Holley (1887-1960), prominent follower of the Bahá'í FaithJames W. Holley, III, politicianKerrie Holley, software architectLonnie Holley, artistMartin Holley, Roman Catholic prelateMarietta Holley, humouristMichael Holley, sports commentatorMyron Holley (1779–1841), NY politicianOrville L. Holley (1791–1861), NYS Surveyor General 1838-1842Robert W. Holley, biochemistSam Holley, Baseball umpire