Updated June 9, 2019

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Family name origins & meanings

  • Americanized form of German Breil or Breyhel, a variant of Bruehl. Compare Briles.
  • Johannes Breyhel and his family, from Oetisheim in Württemberg, were among a group of German colonists sponsored by VA Governor Alexander Spotswood in 1714. They founded a settlement called Germanna in Orange County. Hans Jacob Breyhel (born 1705) was the ancestor of the Broyles family, while his brother Conrad was founder of the Briles family.