The story
- Old English · derived fromdierne“secret, hidden”
- English todayDearnley
Habitational surname from a minor place in Lancashire, from Old English dierne (“secret, hidden”) + lēah (“woodland clearing, glade”). Equivalent to dearn + -ley (“lea”).
Words from the same roots
Old Englishdierne all →
DarnallDearneDurnford
Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.