Low
A surname with several possible roots, including a topographic meaning “low-lying” and a possible Norman place-name source.
The #2,979 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 25,660 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is most likely to have several independent origins. In English, it may come from Middle English low, meaning “low” or “of low stature,” and in some cases from a nickname or a place-description. It may also be Norman in origin, from a Saint-Lô / Saint-Loe form in Norman records, since early spellings such as Saint Lo, Saint Loe, and Saint Low were noted and linked to Norman place-names.
History
The name appears in English and Norman contexts, and historical sources treat it as potentially more than one surname. Some bearers may descend from families using Low as a simple descriptive byname, while others may represent altered forms of Saint-Lô or related Norman place-names. The surname is established in Britain and later carried to North America and other English-speaking regions.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Early heraldic references for one Low family describe wolves’ heads in the coat of arms, showing how surname histories can preserve family identity as well as word origin.
From the historical record
“LOW 201 LUC the family : Quarterly, three wolves' heads, and three wolves passant, and the crest, a wolf's head. These bearings are of course”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom