Bristow
An English place-based surname, usually taken from the old name of Bristol.
The #4,819 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 42,161 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Bristow is a habitational surname from the city of Bristol, whose older forms included Bristow and Bristoll. The name is generally understood as a shortened or dialectal form of Bristol rather than a separate word meaning. One 19th-century source analyzed it as from elements meaning something like “bright/pleasant place,” but that explanation is not the one usually followed in modern surname reference works.
History
Bardsley specifically notes Bristow as a surname form of Bristol, and later writers repeat that connection. The spelling with -ow reflects older and dialectal English spellings, and it became established as a surname in its own right. It is still found chiefly in England and English-speaking countries, including the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname preserves an older spelling of Bristol that was still current in historical documents and speech.
From the historical record
“the Avon finds a passage to the sea. BRISTOW. (Sax.) Local. From Irihs, pleasant, bright, and stow, the same as stead, a place. BRITTE. A word used in Dutch poetry for a Brittainer. BRITTON, BRITTEN, and BRITTAN. A native of Britain, the ancient name of England. Several derivations have been given to Britain, such…”
— An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names