The name Birlingham is derived from the Old English Byrla–inga–hamm, meaning "Land, in a river-bend, of a man called Byrla".

[2] The Swan Inn, the village's public house, is believed to date back to the 16th century.

[4] Birlingham is surrounded on the north, south and east sides by a river-bend known as Swans Neck, part of the River Avon.

Birlingham is served by the church of St James the Great, located in the Anglican Diocese of Worcester.

The current west tower was built in the 15th century, the rest of the church being rebuilt around the 1870s by Rev Robert Rashleigh Duke.