Boley
A surname with several possible roots, most likely a variant spelling of an older place-name or nickname form rather than a single clear origin.
The #6,755 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 61,873 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Boley is not securely explained by the historical sources, and it may represent more than one origin. In some cases it may be a spelling variant of an older name such as Boley/Bole, while in Irish contexts it can be associated with forms related to the Irish word for a summer pasture or cattle-fold place-name element. It could also sometimes have arisen as a shortened or altered form of another surname that sounded similar.
History
The surname appears in modern English-speaking populations, including the United States, but the old surname dictionaries consulted here do not provide a firm single derivation. Because the spelling is compact and phonetically simple, it may have developed independently in more than one family line, which is common with short surnames. The 2010 U.S. census shows it as an uncommon but established surname.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Short surnames like Boley often have multiple unrelated family origins, so two people with the same spelling are not always genealogically connected.
From the historical record
“Bole, for Dol. See Stuart. Boley, or Dolloy, for ])"Oylf/j- ; armoiially identified (Eobion). Sollaraore, from I)e la More, or De la Mark.”
— The Norman People and their existing descendants in the British dominions and the United States