Markley
A surname that may be an Anglicized or altered form of a German name such as Markel or Merkel.
The #4,679 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 40,726 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The historical evidence here is thin, but the name appears in Pennsylvania German scholarship as an English-looking spelling that may reflect a German surname such as Markel or Merkel. In that context, Markley is best treated as an altered or Anglicized form rather than a clearly native English surname with a single secure meaning. The spellings in the source suggest a close relationship to German diminutive forms, but the exact source name is not certain.
History
The name is noted in Pennsylvania German material as one of several German surnames that were reshaped to sound more English in America. That kind of spelling shift was common among immigrant families in Pennsylvania and nearby regions. Because the record is brief and incidental, no more precise history can be stated with confidence.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In one historical note, Markley is grouped with examples like Gerber > Garver and Herbach > Harbaugh as a surname reshaped by English spelling habits.
From the historical record
“English Derby is pronounced Darby, Clerk Clark, and so forth, so the German Gerber becomes Garver, Herbach becomes Har baugh, Werfel becomes Warfel, Merkley becomes Markley, and 1K Leman may come from the French Le Mont. 324 Studies in Pennsylvania German Family Names.”
— Studies in Pennsylvania German Family Names