Harleys
in the rest of the world
The
surname "Harley" is derived from a place name, usually
explained in surname listings as meaning "hare's wood,"
hara being Old English for "hare" and "lea"
usually interpreted as "wood." But hares don't live
in woods...... and in fact in England a lea, from the Old English
leah (also spelt lay or ley) is open country: arable land,
meadow or pasture - just the sort of country that hares DO live
in! So it would be more accurate to explain the derivation as
"One who came from, or lived near, the field with the hares."
Since
"Harley" is a rural designation with widespread application
(hares are still common and, unlike the rabbit, native to the
British Isles) it came into use in several different places :
there are currently four places called "Harley" in England
alone, widely spaced in Gloucestershire, Sussex, Shropshire and
Yorkshire, and doubtless in the past it was used as a local, unofficial
descriptive place name too. In addition to these UK Harleys, it
was also used in Ireland, the Irish Harleys often having strong
connections to the Scottish Harleys leaving one to wonder if they
originated there.
Later
adoptions of the Harley name may well be associated with the noble
families of that name - the first Earl of Oxford was Robert Harley,
and workers associated with the family estates would sometimes
have been known as "of Harley" (or de Harley) soon dropping
the of / de designation.
By
the time of the 1901 census there were 1,406 Harleys in Scotland
and 4,142 in England and Wales, of whom just 66 were Scottish-born.
Populations of Harleys became established in the USA, Canada,
Australia, New Zealand and South Africa, the majority doubtless
as a result of economic migration during the eighteenth and nineteenth
centuries.
During
the two World Wars a large number of Harleys from all over the
world fought and inevitably a number fell : the names of those
from the Commonwealth (UK, Canada, Australia, New Zealand and
South Africa) can be seen here
(WW1) : (WW2 casualties and US casualties will be
added soon.)
Some Harley
websites well worth visiting :
Harley
Surname Website (Dianne
Elizabeth Harley, USA) - excellent site; includes link to extensive
Harley Gedcom file.
The
desendants of Samuel Harley (England and Canada)
Harley
at Rootsweb
The
Genealogy Register - Harley surname resources
Work
in progress.......please check back
