Voss
A surname most often explained as meaning “fox,” especially from Dutch or Low German roots.
The #1,719 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 14,765 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually derived from Dutch and Low German vos, meaning “fox.” Harrison and Lower both give this straightforward animal-name explanation, and Harrison also notes the cognates in Germanic languages more broadly. It may have begun as a nickname for someone thought foxlike in appearance or character, or as a transferred form of a continental byname.
History
The name is well attested in Germanic-speaking areas and was later anglicized in Britain. In English records it can also appear among families of Dutch or Low German origin, which fits its form and spelling. Some Cornish writers tried to connect Voss with local place-name elements, but the clearest and most widely supported explanation is the continental “fox” derivation.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same root shows up across Germanic languages: Dutch vos, Low German fos, and German Fuchs all mean “fox.”
From the historical record
“VOLLER, a form of Vowlep = Fowlep, q.v. VOSS (Teut.) an Anglicized form of the Dut. and Low Ger. Vos (Fox). VOULES, V. Vowles. VOWELL"! (Eng.) voiced (West-Country) VOWLE J forms of Fowell, Fowie, q.v. (Celt.) for Voel, q.v. VOWLER, a voiced (West-Country) form of Fowlep, q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)