Beaulieu
A French habitational surname meaning “beautiful place” or “fair location.”
The #3,349 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 28,868 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Beaulieu comes from French place-names built from beau “beautiful, fair” and lieu “place,” ultimately from Latin bellus and locus. As a surname, it originally identified someone who came from a place called Beaulieu, or who lived near one. In English records it was often adapted in spelling and pronunciation, and some forms were later Anglicized.
History
The surname is widespread in France and appears in many place-names there, which helped it become a common locational surname. In English sources it also shows up in altered forms such as Bewley, reflecting local pronunciation and spelling change over time. The name is associated with several families in Britain and Ireland, especially where French or Norman influence was strong.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same French place-name element appears in many European toponyms, so Beaulieu is part of a very large family of surnames meaning “from the beautiful place.”
From the historical record
“There is a Beaufai in Orne, Normandy. BEAULIEU (Fr.) see Beaulieu in Diet, BEAUMONT (Fr.) see Beaumont in Diet. ' BECK (Ger.) Baker [Dial. Ger. Jec*, M.H.Ger. becke,0.ii.Gev.becko] BECKER (Ger.) Baker [Ger. backer, M^H.Ger. ' becket] BEHREND (Ger.) Bear [f. O.Ger. Berin (with”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)