Duvall
A surname of French origin meaning “of the valley,” originally a place-based name.
The #1,811 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 15,559 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Duvall is a French surname built from de or du, meaning “of the,” and val, meaning “valley.” In other words, it originally identified someone who lived in or came from a valley. The related spellings Duval and Duvall preserve the same basic sense.
History
The name is well established in French and French-influenced naming traditions, and it appears in English-language records through migration and settlement from French-speaking areas. In the United States, Duvall has been used both as a family name and as a place-name surname, sometimes alongside the more common spelling Duval. The surname is especially familiar in North America through families of French or Franco-American background.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The core meaning of Duvall is closely related to English surnames like Dale, all pointing back to a valley landscape.
From the historical record
“'of the fort;' Dupree, Duprej', {pre) 'of the meadow,' (our Mead); Dupuy ' of the well,' (our Wells); Duvall, Duval, 'of the valley,' (our Dale) ; and many others. Dubbe, an A-Sax. personal”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom