Harwood
A surname usually taken from a place name meaning “hare wood” or “gray/hoary wood,” used for someone who came from such a place.
The #3,212 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 27,473 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Harwood is generally a locational surname. It is commonly explained as coming from an English place name built from Old English elements such as hār or hara, meaning either “gray, hoary” or “hare,” plus wudu, meaning “wood.” In practice, the name may point to someone from a place called Harwood or Harewood, rather than to a single fixed meaning everywhere.
History
19th-century surname writers often treated Harwood as a local surname and pointed to several English places with that name. In records from northern England, especially Lancashire and Yorkshire, the name appears as a place-based family name. It has also been confused at times with similar-looking surnames such as Howard or Hereward in older sources.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley specifically notes Harwood as a local surname connected with Harewood, a village and parish north of Leeds.
From the historical record
“Percy's Reliques- YARWOOD (Eng.) for Harwood (q.v.), with common dial, substitution of Y- lor H-. YATE (Eng.) Dweller at a Gate [M.E. yatie, yet{e, yeat(e,.0.^. geai, a gate, opening] Henry del Yate. —”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)