Renfrow
A surname most likely developed from a place-name, probably referring to someone from or near Renfrew in Scotland.
The #8,337 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 77,730 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Renfrow is generally understood as a variant spelling of Renfrew, the name of a place in the west of Scotland. The place-name is usually explained as coming from Brittonic elements meaning something like "at the mouth of the stream" or "point/confluence by the river," though the exact early form is debated. As a surname, it would have been used for someone who came from that district or whose family was identified with it.
History
The surname is comparatively uncommon and is found mainly in English-speaking countries, especially the United States. Like many locational surnames, it likely spread through migration from Scotland or through descendants of families who had adopted the place-name as a hereditary surname. Spelling variation is common, and Renfrow may reflect an Anglicized or simplified form of Renfrew.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Renfrew is the name of a historic town in Scotland, and surnames based on place-names often kept older spellings that shifted over time in different branches of the same family.