Varley Family History

habitational name from Varley or Varleys in Devon, or any of the other places in southwestern England named in Old English as ‘fern clearing’ (see Farley), the change from f to v arising from voicing of f which is characteristic of that area. (of Norman origin) habitational name from Verly in Aisne, Picardy, France, so named from the Gallo-Roman personal name Virilius + the locative suffix -acum, or from Vesly (La Manche); surnames of this origin are recorded in Suffolk from the 13th century. However, the overwhelming preponderence of the modern surname is in West Yorkshire.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names ©2013, Oxford University Press