Anglicized form of Irish 'Ó Dálaigh' meaning 'descendant of the assembly member.'
Daily as a given name derives primarily from the Irish surname Daly — itself an anglicization of Ó Dálaigh, meaning "descendant of Dálach," with Dálach likely connected to the Old Irish word dál meaning "assembly" or "gathering." The Ó Dálaigh were historically a distinguished family of hereditary poets in medieval Ireland, keepers of the bardic tradition across Munster and Connacht. Theirs was a lineage of language: to carry their name was to carry the memory of those who shaped words into verse for chieftains and kings.
The transition from surname to given name follows a well-worn path in American naming culture, where Irish surnames like Riley, Brady, and Casey long ago became first names with lives of their own. Daily and its variant Daley occasionally appear as given names in nineteenth and twentieth century American records, particularly in communities with Irish immigrant roots. The alternate spelling Daily nudges the name toward the everyday English word — evoking constancy, regularity, something that shows up without fail — which gives it an accidental secondary meaning of reliability and presence.
As a given name in contemporary usage, Daily is genuinely rare, which is both its challenge and its charm. It occupies an interesting space between surname-names (which are very fashionable) and word-names (which have their own devoted following). The double meaning — Irish heritage and the poetic suggestion of daily devotion — gives parents who choose it a quiet richness to grow into.
It is a name that rewards the question "where does that come from?" with a more interesting answer than most.