YARROW
The Yarrow surname is an English locational name, traditionally associated with the River Yarrow in Lancashire. It is derived from the Old English words gearwe or gearo, which mean “ready” or “prepared.” The name would have been bestowed upon individuals who lived near or worked by the river, or who lived in an area where yarrow plants were abundant.
Historical evidence also points to a Scottish branch of the name. In Selkirk, a place called Yarrow dates back to the early twelfth century, when it was recorded as Gierua. The name is thought to derive from the Gaelic garbh, meaning “rough.” Likewise, the Lancashire river is believed to have a Welsh origin, either from garw (“rough”) or arian (“silver”). Consequently, Yarrow has both English and Scottish roots tied to geographical features described as rough or silver.
The earliest documented spelling of the family name is found in a 1573 entry for Sarah Yarrowe at St. Dionis Church, London, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I (1558–1603). In later centuries, movement of families from their place of birth prompted the adoption of locational surnames for identification, which explains the widespread dispersion of the name across England and Scotland.
An example of the name’s preservation in historical records is John Yarrow, who married Susanna Merredith in 1766 at St. George's, Hanover Square, London. Such entries confirm the continuity of the surname in civil and church registers throughout the early modern period.
Thus, the Yarrow surname exemplifies the typical pattern of medieval English and Scottish locational names, rooted in the natural landscape and preserved through ecclesiastical and civil documentation over several centuries.
Typical given names associated with the Yarrow surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- Ian
- John
- Mark
- Martin
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
- Stephen
- Thomas
Female
- Alison
- Barbara
- Carole
- Caroline
- Catherine
- Emma
- Helen
- Jane
- Janet
- Karen
- Margaret
- 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 Yarrow in...
Braille
⠽⠁⠗⠗⠕⠺
Morse
-.--.-.-..-.---.--
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,417 people named Yarrow in the UK. That makes it roughly the 5,621st most common surname in Britain. Around 22 in a million people in Britain are named Yarrow.
Surname type: Location or geographical feature
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Yarrow
- David Yarrow - Photographer and financier
- Alan Yarrow - Lord Mayor of London
- Alfred Yarrow - Shipbuilder (1842 to 1932)
- Eric Yarrow - Businessman (1920 to 2018)
- Robin Yarrow - Rower
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.