The process that gives rise to the cerebellar Purkinje cell layer. This process pertains to the initial formation of a structure from unspecified parts. The Purkinje cell layer lies just underneath the molecular layer of the cerebellar cortex. It contains the neuronal cell bodies of the Purkinje cells that are arranged side by side in a single layer. Candelabrum interneurons are vertically oriented between the Purkinje cells. Purkinje neurons are inhibitory and provide the output of the cerebellar cortex through axons that project into the white matter. Extensive dendritic trees from the Purkinje cells extend upward in a single plane into the molecular layer where they synapse with parallel fibers of granule cells. [ GOC:dgh GOC:cls GOC:dph https://www.worldcat.org/search?q=bn%3A0838580343 http://purl.obolibrary.org/obo/go/references/0000021 GOC:jid ]