Easley

The surname Easley was first found in Hampshire at Eastleigh, originally a Saxon village first recorded c. 932 as "East lea" where "leah" was an ancient Anglo-Saxon word meaning "a clearing in a forest." Collectively the place name meant "east wood or clearing." [1] The village lies on the old Roman road, built c. 79 A.D. between Winchester and Bitterne. By the time of the Domesday Book of 1086, the village was known as Estleie. [2] Today the village is a railway town in the Borough of Eastleigh. As far as the surname is concerned, it was first referenced in the year 1219 when Henry of Eastley held estates in Yorkshire.