DuBose
A surname of French origin, likely meaning “from the woods,” and found mainly in the American South.
The #2,748 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 23,532 Americans shares it.
Etymology
DuBose is generally taken as a French surname built on the element du, meaning “of the” or “from the,” plus a place-name element related to bois, “woods” or “woodland.” In that sense, it likely began as a locational name for someone from a wooded place or a settlement called Bois. The spelling has also been influenced by later Anglicization in English-speaking countries.
History
The name is best known in the United States, especially in the South, where it appears among families of French or French-Huguenot background. Over time, the spelling DuBose became fixed as a family name, though related forms and spellings may occur in older records. Its modern distribution reflects both French immigration and later American family lines.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
DuBose is often confused with the much more common French surname Dubois, which looks similar and shares the same basic “woods” sense.