The Parsley surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,315 people carried this name — #5,508 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 46,700 people counted. That is down 1% from 6,374 in 2000.

Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the Parsley surname

Altered form, later assimilated by folk etymology to the herb name parsley, of the medieval family name Passelewe, from Old French passer (“to pass”) + la (“the”) + ewe (“water”), probably a nickname for a ferryman or a person who travelled overseas.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Parsley» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Passelewe’.

His entry covers Parsley and Parslow.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 586 · public domain.

In print

Parsley in American newspapers,
1907.

Newspaper page from The Montgomery Advertiser carrying the name Parsley
The Montgomery Advertiser 1907-04-21
Newspaper page from The Salt Lake Herald carrying the name Parsley
The Salt Lake Herald 1907-04-21
Newspaper page from The Montgomery Advertiser carrying the name Parsley
The Montgomery Advertiser 1907-04-21

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 293 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Parsley in Australian newspapers,
1840s–1960s.

453 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Parsley. The most, 119, date from the 1940s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Victoria, at 1.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 177
Victoria 114
Queensland 60
Western Australia 38
South Australia 31
Tasmania 27
ACT (Canberra) 3
Northern Territory 1

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Parsley.

Who carried it

People named Parsley,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Norman Parsley 1923–1993 · association football player
  • Norman Parsley 1923–1993 · association football player
  • Charlie Parsley 1925–1997 · basketball player

Wikidata (CC0) · 9 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Parsley,
in the records of 5 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States359 records

359 records of the Parsley name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 213
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 76
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 23
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 23
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 15
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 6
  • U.S. service members who died in the Vietnam War 2
  • Irish Famine arrivals at New York, 1846–1851 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Clarence E. Parsley

    Born 1922 in West Virginia. Enlisted 1941 at Huntington; farm hand from Wayne County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1997, buried at Obetz Cemetery, Columbus, Ohio.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Ronald Lee Parsley

    Born 1946; from Monroeville, Ohio. U.S. Marine Corps, motor vehicle operator; died in an accident 1967 in Quang Tri, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Ellen Parsley

    Arrived at New York in 1857 aboard the Isaac Webb from Liverpool, aged 19; servant. From Ireland.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 359 records for Parsley in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia49 records

49 records of the Parsley name in Australia
  • Tasmanian Names Index 18
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 15
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 11
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 5
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Mary Parsley

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Planter, arriving 1839; ticket of leave 1844.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record James Parsley

    Arrived in Victoria in 1853 aboard the Lady Flora, aged 23; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Catherine Parsley

    Died 1885 in Hobart, Tasmania, aged 70.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 49 records for Parsley in Australia.

Counts: Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada8 records

8 records of the Parsley name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 5
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 2
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Clara Parsley

    Died 1974 in Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 76.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Edward Lawrence Parsley

    Buried in 1979 at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  3. A Canadian First World War grave register card for a soldier who died of wounds in 1917
    Example: Canadian war grave register, 1917
    War record William Alfred Parsley

    Died in service in 1944.

    Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada.

Showing 3 of 8 records for Parsley in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Canadian First World War circumstances-of-death register (scan by Scottgraham87 via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0).

United Kingdom5 records

5 records of the Parsley name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 4
  • St James's burial ground, Euston (London), 1789–1853 1
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Elizh Parsley

    Buried in 1800 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 60.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record J. Parsley

    Driver, Royal Field Artillery. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record J. A. Parsley

    Lance Corporal, Leinster Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Parsley in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

France1 record

1 record of the Parsley name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Georges Ernest Alphonse Parsley

    Born 1905 in Marseille; died 1988 in Aix-en-Provence (Bouches-du-Rhône).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Parsley.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Parsley is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Parsley volume
Scroll to Top