Bowler Surname

26,959th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 19,923 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
England
Highest density in:
Isle of Man

Bowler Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from an occupation. 'the bowler,' a maker of wooden bowls and dishes. 'Bolle, vesselle: concha, luter.' 'Bolle, dysche: cantart': Promptorium Parvulorum.

John Foune, boller, g Edward III: Freemen of York.

John le Bolur, Oxfordshire, 1273.

Read More About This Surname

Bowler Surname Distribution Map

By incidenceBy frequencyBy rank
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England7,3351:7,5961,111
United States6,9681:52,0186,262
Australia2,1511:12,5501,830
Canada9291:39,6624,958
New Zealand5081:8,9141,538
South Africa4321:125,41114,757
Ireland4261:11,0541,407
Wales2951:10,4901,166
Malawi2351:72,8479,384
Scotland1571:34,1013,361
Northern Ireland1311:14,0841,969
France721:922,538106,020
Singapore431:128,0865,748
Germany281:2,875,195137,699
Argentina231:1,858,40995,340
Thailand201:3,531,917315,217
Spain191:2,460,63358,585
Isle of Man151:5,7211,243
United Arab Emirates131:704,79025,221
Zimbabwe131:1,187,55768,998
Denmark121:470,39330,183
Jamaica81:358,7438,527
Hong Kong71:1,047,9264,985
Panama61:652,04310,051
Switzerland61:1,368,81977,571
India61:127,844,230863,365
Brazil51:42,814,866547,158
Bahamas41:97,9381,027
Portugal41:2,604,56016,079
Sweden31:3,282,252190,759
Japan31:42,614,76459,022
Jersey31:33,0674,675
Norway31:1,714,09579,528
Czechia21:5,316,734169,646
Senegal21:7,289,6718,117
Peru21:15,892,06251,966
Nigeria21:88,571,379625,098
Chile21:8,808,23765,417
China21:683,660,78330,601
Netherlands21:8,443,588136,641
Greece11:11,079,790145,225
Tanzania11:52,941,613123,716
Indonesia11:132,249,194811,426
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Ukraine11:45,522,696503,646
Honduras11:8,816,4429,272
Belgium11:11,496,644167,539
Israel11:8,557,634182,558
Gibraltar11:33,9541,660
El Salvador11:6,343,8888,415
Cyprus11:884,87613,055
Algeria11:38,631,551130,422
Afghanistan11:32,153,18360,828
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
Pakistan11:178,643,885213,220
Italy11:61,156,688199,583
Mauritius11:1,293,41716,552
Mexico11:124,126,205103,776
Bulgaria11:6,978,90586,260
Russia11:144,123,056881,408
Romania11:20,077,87089,414
Qatar11:2,357,99976,403
Cambodia11:15,487,14614,824
Philippines11:101,238,223404,861
Papua New Guinea11:8,153,717181,784
Oman11:3,687,97114,390
Show All Nations
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland4721:9,3851,381
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England3,5801:6,8091,051
Wales441:35,6461,944
Scotland311:120,7495,564
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1,6091:31,2113,763

Bowler (36) may also be a first name.

Bowler Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from an occupation. 'the bowler,' a maker of wooden bowls and dishes. 'Bolle, vesselle: concha, luter.' 'Bolle, dysche: cantart': Promptorium Parvulorum.

John Foune, boller, g Edward III: Freemen of York.

John le Bolur, Oxfordshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Stephen le Bolur, Surreyf, ibid.

Robert le Boiler, 1301. Writs of Parliament.

Adam le Bolour, 1307. Writs of Parliament.

Richard le Bolour, Lancashire, 1332: Lay Subsidy (Rylands).

1700. Baptised — Angellet, d. of William Bowler: St. James, Clerkenwell.

— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

This is a very old Kerry surname which according to evidence adduced by Miss M. A. Hickson was originally le Fougheler, Maurice FitzMaurice le Fougheler being coroner of Co. Kerry in 1320. In due course we find the name in an inquisition given as Fuller alias Bowler. By the sixteenth century it had become standardized as Bowler with Bowdler as a variant. The Desmond Survey of 1587 refers to Bowlerstown, which is situated near Dingle the homeland of the family, and other contemporary documents call the place Ballybowler which is its present designation. Bowler is listed in the “census”of 1659 as a principal Irish name in the barony of Corcaguiney (in which Dingle lies). The name is still very closely connected with Kerry. According to the 1911 census, of which an analysis is available for Co. Kerry, there were 54 families of the name then living there; in 1890 all the 14 births registered for Bowler in that year were in Kerry; and in 1865 there were 25 births, all but one in or near Kerry. People of the name were not, of course, entirely confined to Kerry, but spread to some extent into the neighbouring counties of Cork and Limerick — in 1710, for example, William Bowler was sovereign of Kinsale.

The name was gaelicized as Bóighléir: Father Thomas Bowler (Tomas Bóighléir) was the author of an elegy in Irish on Donogh MacCarthy, Bishop of Cork and Cloyne, who died in 1726.

— Supplement to Irish Families (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

(English) Bowl-Maker [Middle English boller(e, bolourie; Middle English bolle, Old English bolla, a bowl + the agential suff. -ere] Robert le Boller.—Parl. Writs.

— Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

Bóighléir A very old (but not Gaelic) name in Co. Kerry where Ballybowler indicates its location. SIF 20

— A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

(English) One who made or sold concave vessels or bowls.

— Dictionary of American Family Names (1956) by Elsdon Coles Smith

In Fifeshire, 'to bowl' is to boil. One who cooks. Or perhaps a maker of bowls.

— Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

The Encycl. Herald, mentions this family as "of Bowler, co. Wilts."

— Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

From the French, Boulard; from the German, Buller; a personal name.$

— British Family Names: Their Origin and Meaning (1903) by Henry Barber

Bowler: a maker of wooden bowls. Also Bolister.

— Family Names And Their Story (1913) by Sabine Baring-Gould
DNA test information
Display Statistics on:

Bowler Demographics

Bowler Religious Adherence
in Ireland

Sample size: 472 (1901)

Religious Adherence
in Ireland

View the most religious surnames in Ireland

Bowler Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Bowler Come From? nationality or country of origin

Bowler is found most in England. It may be found as a variant:. Click here for other possible spellings of Bowler.

How Common Is The Last Name Bowler? popularity and diffusion

The last name Bowler is the 26,959th most frequent family name at a global level It is held by around 1 in 365,786 people. Bowler is predominantly found in Europe, where 43 percent of Bowler are found; 42 percent are found in Northern Europe and 42 percent are found in British Isles. Bowler is also the 1,717,090th most commonly occurring forename at a global level. It is borne by 36 people.

This last name is most commonly held in England, where it is carried by 7,335 people, or 1 in 7,596. In England Bowler is primarily concentrated in: Nottinghamshire, where 9 percent live, Derbyshire, where 9 percent live and Greater London, where 8 percent live. Other than England it occurs in 65 countries. It also occurs in The United States, where 35 percent live and Australia, where 11 percent live.

Bowler Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of Bowler has changed over time. In England the number of people bearing the Bowler last name expanded 205 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it expanded 433 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Ireland it decreased 10 percent between 1901 and 2014; in Wales it expanded 670 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it expanded 506 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Bowler Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those carrying the Bowler surname is principally Catholic (100%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Bowler last name are 7.95% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than The US average, with 54.72% registered with the party.

The amount Bowler earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 336.53% more than the national average, earning 1,510,760 kr per year; in Peru they earn 146.53% more than the national average, earning S/. 47,790 per year; in South Africa they earn 58.35% more than the national average, earning R 376,296 per year; in United States they earn 12.07% more than the national average, earning $48,359 USD per year and in Canada they earn 8.18% more than the national average, earning $53,746 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ASimilarity (high to low)Similarity (low to high)Prevalent jurisdiction A-ZPrevalent jurisdiction Z-A
SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Bowller9223/
Bowlier924/
Vowler83116/
Bawler8394/
Bobler833/
Buwler831/
Bowlerová801/
Bowlair771/
Bouvler771/
Boobler770/
Bewhler770/
Bovlger770/
Bouswiller750/
Bowlaire712/
Bobiller712/
Bowelljr711/
Babler671,616/
Bäbler67350/
Bubler674/
Bábler671/
Buswyller671/
Buvler671/
Vuwler670/
Vabler670/
Vawler670/
Bushweller6331/
Buswijller637/
Bushwiller630/
Beubler6282/
Vobiller5712/
Buvlér504/
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Bowler Reference & Research

Boler FamilyTree DNA Project - A description of a group researching the paternal lines of men who bear the surname with the help of DNA analysis.

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Bowler
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis