Family name origins & meanings
- English : variant spelling of Burley.
- Probably an altered spelling of Swiss German Beerli, from a short form of the Germanic personal name Berilo, from Old High German bero ‘bear’.
- Possibly an Anglicized spelling of French Berlet, from a diminutive of Berle, a topographic name from Old French berle ‘water parsnip’ (of Celtic origin, compare Welsh berur, Gaelic biorar ‘watercress’), or perhaps an occupational name for a grower of the plant.