Chau
A short surname with several possible origins, most often tied to French names beginning with Chau- or to Asian surnames transliterated as Chau.
The #2,181 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 18,524 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Chau is not a single-origin name: in the French records it can be part of families written Chau- or Chauv-, often from names ultimately tied to a place-name or a descriptive nickname. In modern usage, however, Chau is also found as a Romanized surname from Vietnamese and Chinese naming traditions, where it may represent different underlying characters and meanings. Because the spelling alone does not determine which tradition is meant, the literal meaning is uncertain without family or regional context.
History
The historical excerpts point mainly to French surname forms such as Chauvet, Chauvin, and Chauvel, which show how Chau- often belonged to longer medieval names rather than standing alone. In English-speaking countries today, Chau is also common among families of Vietnamese and Chinese background, so the same spelling can reflect very different histories. The name’s census presence in the United States therefore likely combines multiple immigrant lineages rather than one single surname family.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same five-letter spelling can represent completely different surnames in different languages, which is a classic genealogy trap for this name.
From the historical record
“a bullfinch. ' Alpe, a biyde ; fici- Jula' : Prompt. Parv. 'Alpes, fyuchca, and wodewalcs': Chau- cer, R. R. 65a Alpe has existed as a surname in co. Norfolk for six ccoturies ; cC Finch, Sparrow, Nightingale, &c”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances