Cow Surname

1,338,236th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 167 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
Iran
Highest density in:
Bermuda

Cow Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the cow'; compare Bull, Bullock, &c.

William le Cue, 3 Edward II: Freemen of York.

Ralph le Cue, 15 Edward II: ibid.

Maurice le Cu, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Thomas le Cu, 1273.

Read More About This Surname

Cow Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Iran721:1,066,42448,180
Scotland291:184,61410,113
England211:2,653,24194,788
Indonesia91:14,694,355460,137
Canada81:4,605,699220,704
Liberia81:551,06725,208
Mexico71:17,732,31550,495
Taiwan31:7,814,91541,694
Malaysia21:14,747,112316,340
Philippines21:50,619,112341,003
South Africa21:27,088,852277,613
Papua New Guinea11:8,153,717181,784
Ethiopia11:97,546,26229,669
China11:1,367,321,56651,149
Bermuda11:65,2793,010
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Scotland2771:13,5131,568
England431:566,86929,432
Isle of Man21:27,1351,659
Wales11:1,568,41619,290
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States841:597,84140,179

Cow (138) may also be a first name.

Cow Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a nickname. 'the cow'; compare Bull, Bullock, &c.

William le Cue, 3 Edward II: Freemen of York.

Ralph le Cue, 15 Edward II: ibid.

Maurice le Cu, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Thomas le Cu, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Ralph le Cou, c. 1300. Writs of Parliament.

Robert le Ku, Close Rolls, 37 Henry III.

Willelmus Cou, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

1806. Married — Richard Jennings and Ann Cowe: St. George, Hanover Square.

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

Radulfus Cowe, juror on inquest apud Muskylburg, 1359 (RD., p. 267), Johannes de le Cow, juror at a court held at 'Le Ballocis Hill' near Inverness, 1376 (Innes Fam., p. 63). Robert Cow held a tenement in Ayr, 1490 (Ayr, p. 94), Alexander Cow was notary public in Edinburgh, 1504 (Soltre, p. 325), and Elizabeth Kow was tenant under the bishop of Aberdeen in Fethirneyr, 1511 (REA., I, p. 365). David Cow was tenant of lands in the Baitschell, 1512 (Cupar-Angus, l, p. 286), and Thomas Cowe was accused of part in the murder of Riccio, 1566 (RPC., I, p. 457). Three persons named Cowe and one named Cowy were tenants of Middil Tullbardin, 1565 (REM., p. 442). George Cow was 'post' in Banff, 1740 (Aberdeen CR.), and Alexander, James, and Margaret Cow were residents in Kildrummy, 1826—34 (Aberdeen four. N & Q., I, p. 127). Lower suggests perhaps local, and mentions John de Cowe in HR , but also says it may be a sobriquet, for both De Cu and Le Cu are in the same record. compare Cuie.

The Surnames of Scotland (1946) by George Fraser Black (1866-1948)

Apparently local. There is a place called Cow-Honeybourne in Gloucestershire, and a John de Cowe occurs in the H.R., co. Bedford. It may however be a sobriquet, for both De Cu and Le Cu are found in the same records, and cu is an ancient orthography of cow.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

From Cowie, or Cowey, armorially identified.

The Norman People (1874)

Cow Last Name Facts

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

Cow is more frequently found in Iran than any other country/territory. It can appear as a variant:. For other possible spellings of Cow click here.

How Common Is The Last Name Cow? popularity and diffusion

It is the 1,338,236th most widely held last name globally It is held by around 1 in 43,637,999 people. The surname Cow occurs mostly in Asia, where 53 percent of Cow live; 43 percent live in South Asia and 43 percent live in Islamic South Asia. Cow is also the 787,636th most numerous first name globally It is held by 138 people.

It is most frequently occurring in Iran, where it is borne by 72 people, or 1 in 1,066,424. In Iran Cow is most numerous in: Gilan Province, where 29 percent reside, Kermanshah Province, where 19 percent reside and Tehran Province, where 17 percent reside. Excluding Iran this surname is found in 14 countries. It is also found in Scotland, where 17 percent reside and England, where 13 percent reside.

Cow Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The occurrence of Cow has changed over time. In Scotland the number of people bearing the Cow last name fell 90 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in England it fell 51 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Chow86255,686/
Cowe861,808/
Cowa86412/
Cowf8615/
Coow867/
Couw866/
Coew864/
Cowz863/
Coww861/
Coyw861/
Ckow861/
Cojw861/
Czow861/
Cowp860/
Chuow7548/
Chowh7544/
Chouw759/
Choww755/
Qcowa755/
Coywe754/
Choow753/
Tchow753/
Ccowa751/
Gcowa751/
Cohwe751/
Cowch751/
Coows751/
Coowe750/
Cowss750/
Cob678,138/
Kow676,527/
Caw67656/
Cof67467/
Zow67125/
Cov6737/
Czowsz6719/
Ciowch6714/
Qow6714/
Cuw674/

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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 Cow
  • 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