Hail
A mainly English surname that is usually a shortened or variant form of Hale, with a local place-name origin.
The #364 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 3,580 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Hail is generally treated as a variant of Hale. In English surname practice, Hale can come from Old English elements meaning a nook, recess, or sheltered place, and in some cases from place-names built on that idea. The spelling Hail likely reflects older variation in pronunciation and spelling rather than a separate root.
History
Lower explicitly cross-references HAIL to Hale, which supports treating it as a spelling variant rather than an independent surname. The name is established in Britain and later appears in English-speaking countries through ordinary surname transmission and migration. Because Hail is also a common English word, some records may show spelling fluctuation or occasional confusion with unrelated words or names.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century surname dictionary simply sends readers from HAIL to Hale, showing how closely the two names were linked in historical indexing.
From the historical record
“HAIGH. A township in Lancashire. HAIL. See Hale. HAILES. See Hales. IIAILEY. A cliapelry in Oxfordshire. HAILSTONE. Alestan is Athelstan, the ancient personal name. Au Alestan was a tenant in chief in co. Hants at the making of Domesday. The surname may, however, be local, either from Hailston, a burn in co.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom