Find out how popular the last name Garley is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Garley.

Garley, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Garley surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Garley in America

Garley is the 50659th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Garley surname appeared 412 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Garley.

We can also compare 2010 data for Garley to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Garley

The surname Garley is of English origin, first appearing in the late 13th century. It is derived from the Old English words "gar" meaning spear and "leah" meaning a meadow or clearing. This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a meadow where spears were made or used.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1297, which lists a Robert de Garlay. The spelling variations at this time included Garlay, Garlie, and Garley. These early spellings provide insight into how the name evolved over time into its modern form.

In the 14th century, the name appears in the Pipe Rolls for Berkshire, where a William Garley is mentioned in 1347. This record indicates the name had spread from its Yorkshire origins to other parts of England by this point.

An important historical figure with this surname was John Garley, who lived in the late 15th century and served as Mayor of Coventry in 1483. Records from this time also show a Thomas Garley who was a landowner in Oxfordshire, born around 1450.

Moving into the 16th century, parish records from 1578 in Warwickshire list the marriage of one Alice Garley to William Smyth. This provides evidence of the name's continued use and presence in the West Midlands region of England during this period.

Another notable individual was Captain Edward Garley, born in 1620, who served in the English Civil War and fought for the Parliamentarian forces. He later became a prominent merchant and landowner in Bristol after the war.

As the name spread across England over the centuries, it also took on variations like Garlick and Garlisch, likely influenced by the similar-sounding word for the vegetable garlic. However, these spellings are considered distinct surnames with separate origins from Garley.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Garley

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Garley.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Garley was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Garley has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Garley was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Garley, please contact us.

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