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Carley Family History

Carley Surname Meaning

Irish (Roscommon): shortened form of McCarley. English: habitational name from the hamlet of Carley in Lifton (Devon) possibly named with Cornish ker ‘fort round (enclosure)’ + legh ‘flat stone slab’.

English: variant of Carlow. Americanized form of Swiss German Kehrli or of its German cognate Kerle (see Kerl) or of some other similar (like-sounding) German surname.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


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Where is the Carley family from?

You can see how Carley families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Carley family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Carley families were found in USA in 1880. In 1891 there were 229 Carley families living in London. This was about 20% of all the recorded Carley's in United Kingdom. London had the highest population of Carley families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Carley surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
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What did your Carley ancestors do for a living?

In 1939, General Labourer and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Carley. 18% of Carley men worked as a General Labourer and 73% of Carley women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Carley were Farmworker and Unpaid Household Duties.

View Census Data for Carley | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1939

  • General Labourer
    18%
  • Gardener
    9%
  • Builders Labourer
    8%
  • Farmworker
    8%

Top Female Occupations In 1939

  • Unpaid Domestic Duties
    73%
  • Incapacitated
    3%
  • Housewife
    2%
  • Unpaid Household Duties
    2%

What Carley family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 63,000 census records available for the last name Carley. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Carley census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search UK census records for Carley

Passenger Lists

There are 6,000 immigration records available for the last name Carley. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the UK, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Carley immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 7,000 military records available for the last name Carley. For the veterans among your Carley ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Carley military records

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