What Does The Last Name 'Lowell' Mean?

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What Does The Last Name 'Lowell' Mean?

2 Answers

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Answer 1

Lowell is the name for a boy. Derived from Old French, implying "young wolf," the name is quite a popular first name and a common surname. There are quite a few places in America which have the name "Lowell." It is the name of a town situated in the Dodge County of Wisconsin. There is also a village by the same name in the same county, i.e. Dodge in Wisconsin with a population of 366. As per the US census reports of 2000, the town had a population of 1169. Lowell is also the name of a city in Middlesex, Massachusetts with a population of 105,167. The city had an important role to play in the industrial revolution of the United States. Lowell is also the name of a town in Maine. Situated in the Penobscot County, the town has a meagre population of about 340. There is yet another Lowell in the Lake County of Indiana, with a population of 7,505. Lastly there is city known as Lowell in Arkansas with a population of 5,013 as per the US 2000 census reports. Interestingly many of the poets and people in the literature field have their last names as Lowell. Some of the noteworthy mentions are Robert Lowell: (American poet and Pulitzer Prize winner), James Russel Lowell (American poet and critic) and Amy Lowell (Non-fiction writer and poet).

Answer 2

The surname Lowell has long been famous for its connection, along with the name Cabot, with the wealthy elite of Boston; and of course with the arts through famous descendants Amy and Robert Lowell, both poets in different eras.

As to its meaning, the name appears to be a variant of the English name Lovell. Like most English surnames, this first emerged in the Middle Ages (before which, most people didn't have them.) It derives from a nickname, Louvel. This was Norman French in origin (the official language of England for about 200 years after 1066) and means "wolf-cub" or "baby wolf" (wolf is LOUP in modern French, with a silent "p".)

Lovell was well known in Richard III's time as the name of one of the king's most powerful advisers, along with two others, Ratcliffe and Catesby. A rhyme of the period described the three of them as "The Cat, the Rat, and Lovell the dog." It added"[They] rule all England under a Hog."