ROWE
Rowe is a surname of English origin that bears a number of historically documented derivations. It is a prominent example of an English family name that encompasses topographical, occupational, and nicknaming origins, as well as a form that may have evolved from a Norse personal name.
The earliest form of the name, recorded as le Rowe in the late 12th century, is generally understood to derive from the Old English word raw, meaning “rough” or “unplowed.” Consequently, it could have been a descriptive adjective applied to a person who dwelt near an unplowed field or who lived beside a raw. The topographical interpretation is further supported by the possibility that the name described those who lived beside a hedge or a row of houses, as the Old English pre-7th century word raw also meant “row.” This sense is reflected in early English records such as Richard le Rowe in the Assize Rolls of Cheshire (1226) and Walter le Rowe in the Plea rolls of the forest of Epping, Essex (1246).
Another plausible origin is occupational: the surname might have been given to a person who worked with rowan trees, berries, or other elements associated with the plant traditionally called a rowan. This hypothesis aligns with the second meaning supplied by early linguistic scholarship, wherein the family name could indicate a trader or gatherer of such produce.
There is also evidence that Rowe could have arisen as a variant spelling of the surname Roe. The name Roe is cognate with the Old Norse word hrafn, meaning “raven.” The depiction of an individual as a raven was typically a nickname applied to a person with dark hair or a dark complexion, a practice that spread through Norse settlement in the British Isles.
Some scholars argue that the name may ultimately derive from the medieval given names Rou or Roul, themselves short for the Germanic personal name Rolf. The name Rolf was interpreted as “renowned wolf.” A further possibility is that Rowe is a shortened form of the Old Germanic or Frankish personal name Rowland, in which case the meaning would be “renowned land.” These personal-names derivations illustrate how a single surname can incorporate several aristocratic or commoner lineages in its history.
The earliest surviving documentation of the surname in England is found in the Pipe Rolls of Leicestershire, where the name appears as Geoffrey le Ruwe in 1195, during the reign of King Richard I, “the Lionheart.” The spelling Ruwe is a phonetic variant that has since settled into the modern form Rowe.
Church records confirm the persistence of the name through the 16th century. For example, Gedeock Rowe was christened on 13 March 1552 at Allhallows in London, and Anne, daughter of William Row was christened on 29 July 1556 at St. Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey. These entries show that the surname was already well-established in both urban and rural ecclesiastical contexts.
The surname was also present among those who left the British Isles during the great migration of the mid-19th century. Maria Rowe, aged 30, is recorded as an Irish famine emigrant who sailed from Liverpool aboard the ship John‑Robert bound for New York on 1 June 1846. Her departure illustrates the continued use of the name in the communities of the British diaspora.
Typical given names associated with the Rowe surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Stephen
Female
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Helen
- Karen
- Margaret
- Mary
- Michelle
- Nicola
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Rowe in...
Braille
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Morse
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There are approximately 31,102 people named Rowe in the UK. That makes it the 255th most common surname in Britain. Around 478 in a million people in Britain are named Rowe.
Origin: Anglo-Saxon
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Rowe
- Emile Smith Rowe - Football player
- Nicholas Rowe - Actor
- Debbie Rowe - Former wife of Michael Jackson
- Solána Imani Rowe - American singer-songwriter
- Charlie Rowe - Actor
- Clive Rowe - Actor
- Danny Rowe - Football player
- Alan Rowe - Actor (1926 to 2000)
- Fanny Rowe - Actress (1913 to 1988)
- Colin Rowe - -born, American-naturalised architectural historian, critic, theoretician, and teacher (1920 to 1999)
- Tommy Rowe - Football player
- Keith Rowe - Artist
- Dick Rowe - Record producer (1921 to 1986)
- Dani Rowe - Track cyclist
- Lathaniel Rowe-Turner - Football player
- Andrew Rowe - Politician (1935 to 2008)
- Arthur Rowe - Association football player and manager (1906 to 1993)
- Luke Rowe -
- Omar Rowe - Football player
- Nicholas Rowe - Poet, writer (1674 to 1718)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.