Rue
A surname that can come from French de la Rue, meaning “of the street,” or from English place-names such as Rew in Devon and Dorset.
The #6,721 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 61,466 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname has more than one possible source. In English records it can be a shortened form of the French de la Rue, literally “of the street,” from Old French rue, “street,” itself from Latin ruga, “road” or “street” in medieval usage. It can also be locational, taken from places called Rew in Devon or Rue in Dorset, so some bearers may have inherited it from a local place-name rather than from the French phrase.
History
Lower specifically lists Rue as coming either from French de la Rue, with the prefix dropped, or from Rew in Devonshire. Barber also notes Rue as a place-name form in Dorset and France, which fits the surname’s locational character. In English usage it is therefore likely to have arisen more than once, from both Anglo-French and native place-name sources.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same Old French word that lies behind Rue also survives in English in place-based surnames and in French street names, making this a good example of how everyday geography became a family name.
From the historical record
“deri^'ed from Rudgwick in that count}'. RUE. ] . The French De la Rue, deprived of its prefix. 2. Eewe, a parish in Devon- shire. RUEL. See Rule. RUFF. Tlie same as Rough. RUFIXE. This name was introduced into England by Dr. James Eufine, a student of Leyden in 1671, who came to this coun- try at the Revocation of…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom