Name Orley Type Surname (from location) Usage English Pronounced Pron. OYR-lee Other Forms FormsOrly Edit Status Status2a. listed usages are verified Meaning & History Habitational name from Orleigh, possibly meaning "Ordwulf’s clearing", functionally from ort "point" and leah "woodland, clearing". It could possibly also be an Anglicized form of the Dutch surname van Oerle.