Giroux
A surname with French roots, likely from a medieval Germanic personal name, though some early forms were later linked to regional saints’ names.
The #6,882 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 63,203 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Giroux is French in form and appears to go back to a medieval personal name rather than a descriptive word. Nineteenth-century sources connect it mainly with an old Germanic name of the type Giro/Giru, sometimes interpreted as a compound with the element for “wolf.” Some scholars also noted that a few regional spellings could be influenced by saint names, but that seems to be an exception rather than the main origin.
History
The name is found in French surname tradition in several close spellings, including Girou, Giroud, Giroult, and Girout. In older French scholarship, Giroux was treated as one of the forms that developed alongside these variants, with spelling differences often reflecting regional pronunciation. The surname later spread beyond France, especially into French-speaking parts of North America.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older French onomastic writers sometimes grouped Giroux with names built on a Germanic root related to “wolf,” showing how many French surnames preserve very old personal names.
From the historical record
“Girou, Girouard, Giroud, Gi- roult, Girout, Giroux. Le dernier est une forme gasconne du nom de saint Geronce, en latiu Geruntim (du grec gtrontos : vieillard); mais c'est une exception. Giroud, Giroult et Girout sont des formes de Girold”
— Dictionnaire des noms (French surnames)