Whiteley
A locational surname meaning “dweller by the white meadow.”
The #6,935 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 63,870 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Whiteley comes from Old English elements meaning “white” and “meadow” or “clearing”: hwit + leah (later ley/lea). The name originally referred to someone who lived near or came from a place called Whitley or Whiteley, literally a “white meadow.”
History
Medieval records show many place-names and surnames in forms like Whitley, Whiteley, Whitely, and Whitelegge, reflecting the same Old English root. The surname was established in several parts of England, especially in counties such as Devon, Yorkshire, and Northumberland. Later spelling variation was common, so Whiteley often sits alongside Whitley and Whitely in historical records.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some 19th-century surname writers even glossed the name as “the white meadow,” showing how transparently the place-name origin was understood.
From the historical record
“dat. form, ledge, of ledh, i., retained. WHITELEY 1 (Eng.) Dweller at the White WHITELY ] Lea [O.E. hwit + ledh (M.E. ley), a meadow, field] WHITELOCK (Eng.) i With a White Lock ; White-haired ; Fair-haired [O.E. hwit -t- locc, lock of hair, hair]”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)