Ealy
A surname most likely from the place-name Ely, though some old sources also link it to similar-sounding local names.
The #7,543 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 70,042 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually treated as a locational name, most likely referring to Ely in Cambridgeshire. In older surname books it is sometimes grouped with names taken from places such as Eardisley or Eardley, but Ely is the clearest and most straightforward explanation for the form Ealy. The name would originally have identified someone who came from, or was connected with, that place.
History
The historical sources provided place Ealy alongside surnames thought to come from Ely, Eardisley, or related place-names, suggesting that the spelling may have developed in more than one way. In practice, Ealy is now a relatively uncommon surname in the United States. Its modern distribution may reflect later spelling simplification from one or more older British surname forms.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Ely was an especially common source of English surnames because place-based bynames often outlived the original local connection and became hereditary family names.
From the historical record
“Eales. See Eels Ealy. From Ely ; a loc. n., Camb. Or see Healy Eames. See Ames Eardley. From Eardisley ; a loc. n., Heref. Or Eardlew, Staffs”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)