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

Yearley, 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 Yearley surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Yearley in America

Yearley is the 124548th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Yearley surname appeared 138 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 Yearley.

We can also compare 2010 data for Yearley 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 Yearley

The surname Yearley originates from England, specifically during the Medieval period. It is an Anglo-Saxon name, likely derived from a geographical or toponymic source, pertaining to a location that may have been named Yearley or something phonetically similar. The earliest roots of the surname can be traced back to the Old English words "gear," meaning “year,” and "leah," meaning “wood” or “clearing.” It suggests that the original bearers of the surname lived near or in a clearing of some kind that was significant in their local calendar year.

Historical references to the surname Yearley can be found in various old English records and manuscripts. One of the earliest mentions comes from the Assize Rolls of Essex, dated 1248, where a Richard de Yerligh is listed. This indicates that the surname was established in England by the mid-13th century. The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, does not include the surname directly, but it records many place names that could have evolved to Yearley.

The earliest recorded examples of the surname in its modern form appear in the 16th century. In 1572, a John Yearley was documented in Norfolk, reinforcing the idea that the name had begun to stabilize in spelling and usage by that time. During this period, surnames in England were becoming hereditary, and variations in spelling began to diminish.

A notable individual with this surname was William Yearley, an actor and playwright born around 1590. He was part of the flourishing theatrical world of Elizabethan and Jacobean England, although his contributions have been largely overshadowed by more famous contemporaries. Another person of historical note is Thomas Yearley, a merchant from Bristol, who was active in the early 1600s and involved in trade with the New World.

The Yearley surname also appears in colonial American records. Anne Yearley, born in England around 1625, immigrated to the colonies and settled in Virginia. She became one of the early settlers and her descendants played roles in the development of the English settlements on the East Coast.

In the 18th century, another renowned bearer of the surname was Reverend Samuel Yearley, born in 1733 in Suffolk, England. He was a prominent clergyman who wrote several theological works, contributing to the religious discourse of the time.

Overall, the surname Yearley has deep roots in English history and can be traced back to various significant records and figures who have carried it through the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Yearley

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

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 Yearley 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 Yearley 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 Yearley was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!