Gourley
A surname that may be linked to a place-name in Scotland or, in some Irish families, to Gaelic names anglicized in different ways.
The #5,826 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 52,030 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Gourley is usually treated as a variant of Gourlay or Gourlie, and in Scotland it is often explained as a habitational name from a place-name now lost or obscure. Some historical sources also connect it with Irish Gaelic surnames that were anglicized in similar-looking forms, so more than one origin may have fed into the modern spelling. Because the evidence is mixed and older writers disagreed, the safest description is that Gourley is an anglicized surname with uncertain but likely British Isles roots.
History
The name appears in several spelling forms, including Gourlay, Gourley, Gourlie, and occasionally Gormley-like variants in older records. In English-speaking countries it spread through migration from Scotland and Ireland, which helps explain why the same surname spelling can have different family histories. In the United States it is present but not especially common.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Old surname dictionaries sometimes filed Gourley right alongside other names that only sound similar, which shows how flexible spelling and pronunciation could be in historical records.
From the historical record
“Fr., FI. Gondry ; p.n. Gourlay, Gourley. See Curly Govane. A loc. n., Lanark Gow. Irish Gobha (a smith). C Dch. Gouw ; a p.n. Gowen. Irish M‘Gowan. See Go”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)