Blue
A nickname surname for someone identified by the color blue, likely from clothing or appearance.
The #1,466 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 12,684 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually explained as a nickname from the color blue, probably referring to the costume, dress, or distinguishing appearance of the first bearer. Older English surname writers also treated it as a descriptive byname, alongside other color-based surnames such as Black, White, and Brown. In some cases the form may reflect a Dutch or continental surname of the same meaning, but the core sense is simply “blue.”
History
The name is recorded in England and Scotland, though one 19th-century authority noted it was more familiar in Scotland than in England. Lower also preserved a jocular epitaph on a Jonathan Blue whose family name was said to have been Black, suggesting popular confusion or a color-based nickname tradition. Later sources link similar forms in Dutch and other European contexts, so some modern bearers may descend from more than one origin path.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century anecdote says one Jonathan Blue’s name was originally Black—“but that wouldn’t do!”
From the historical record
“in CO. Lincoln. BLUE occTirs in Scotland, but I have not met with it in England. It is probably de- rived from the favourite colour of the costume of the original bearer. In a church in Berkshii-e the foUowing epitaph is s,aid to exist : — " Underneath this ancient pew, Lieth the body of Jonatlian Blue. N.B. His…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom