Cowley Surname

19,739th
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 27,784 people bear this surname

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

Cowley Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Cowley,' parishes in Gloucestershire, Middlesex, and Oxfordshire.

Roger de Couele, Oxfordshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Alex, de Coueleye, Oxfordshire, ibid.

1622.

Read More About This Surname

Cowley Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England9,9051:5,625800
United States8,3221:43,5545,344
Australia3,7721:7,1571,053
Canada1,2851:28,6743,774
South Africa1,2411:43,6565,568
New Zealand8641:5,241844
Ireland5841:8,0631,135
Wales3721:8,319928
Scotland2341:22,8802,575
Samoa2031:955301
Isle of Man1881:45640
Tonga1401:767219
Northern Ireland971:19,0212,369
Cuba791:145,8573,607
France731:909,900105,096
Israel711:120,53013,243
Spain401:1,168,80140,601
Thailand271:2,616,235275,741
Papua New Guinea261:313,60442,091
Germany251:3,220,218147,383
Zimbabwe201:771,91253,776
Singapore171:323,98313,856
Italy161:3,822,293103,776
India151:51,137,692512,385
Jersey141:7,0861,520
Brazil101:21,407,433350,627
Malawi91:1,902,12319,532
Mozambique91:3,029,0632,946
Netherlands91:1,876,35385,467
Sweden81:1,230,84590,587
United Arab Emirates71:1,308,89651,006
Hong Kong71:1,047,9264,985
China71:195,331,65210,124
Chile61:2,936,07935,997
Philippines61:16,873,037249,062
Malaysia41:7,373,556230,001
Uruguay41:857,94031,713
Venezuela41:7,551,01953,668
Finland41:1,374,17650,379
Greece41:2,769,948101,568
Guernsey41:16,1101,225
Switzerland31:2,737,638105,941
Costa Rica31:1,593,3568,177
Zambia31:5,283,30743,479
Belgium31:3,832,215117,288
Norway21:2,571,14395,402
Trinidad and Tobago21:681,98817,017
Czechia21:5,316,734169,646
Puerto Rico21:1,775,0706,602
Japan21:63,922,14662,827
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Algeria11:38,631,551130,422
Austria11:8,515,435118,036
Aruba11:103,4772,586
Argentina11:42,743,414282,706
Dominican Republic11:10,432,93236,508
Namibia11:2,409,40119,676
Eritrea11:4,751,901911
Haiti11:10,683,90724,607
Honduras11:8,816,4429,272
Iceland11:380,09011,096
Indonesia11:132,249,194811,426
Iraq11:35,021,65431,813
Denmark11:5,644,71593,155
Kuwait11:3,800,69427,187
Latvia11:2,050,04660,295
Malta11:430,2723,380
Mexico11:124,126,205103,776
Somalia11:13,452,0619,224
Nigeria11:177,142,758748,972
Oman11:3,687,97114,390
Pakistan11:178,643,885213,220
Panama11:3,912,25817,195
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Portugal11:10,418,24125,048
Qatar11:2,357,99976,403
Russia11:144,123,056881,408
Saint Vincent and the Grenadines11:112,6591,704
Cyprus11:884,87613,055
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland3691:12,0051,640
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England4,8081:5,070768
Isle of Man5241:10415
Scotland991:37,8102,945
Wales871:18,0281,057
Jersey151:3,459578
Guernsey81:4,082713
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1,8061:27,8073,420

Cowley (60) may also be a first name.

Cowley Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Cowley,' parishes in Gloucestershire, Middlesex, and Oxfordshire.

Roger de Couele, Oxfordshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Alex, de Coueleye, Oxfordshire, ibid.

1622. Burled—Saray, d. Walter Cowley: St. James, Clerkenwell.

1656. — John, s. James Cowly: ibid.

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

(English) 1 Dweller at the Cow-Lea [Old English cú + leáh] 2 a form of Coley, q.v. (Celtic) abbrev. of MacAulay, q.v.

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

One of the ten “tribes” of Kilkenny. Bibl; IF 266

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

A Donegal variant of MacAuley, q.v

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

A Donegal variant of MacAuley, q.v

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

(English) One who came from Cowley (Cufa’s meadow, cow meadow, or clearing where charcoal was burned), the name of several places in England.

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

Parishes, &c. in cos. Gloucester, Middlesex, Oxford, and Salop.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Local. The cow—pasture.

An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names (1857) by William Arthur

(pronounced Cowlah), probably contracted from MacAulay, the shortened form of Mac AmhIaoibh, 'Anlaf's or Olaf's Son', though it may possibly be from the Irish MacAmhalghadha, Anglicised MacAwler and Magawley.

The Scandinavian name Anleifr, Álefer, ÓlÁfr was rendered by AnlÁf in the Saxon Chronicle, and by Amhlabh in the Irish Chronicles; thus Righ Amhlab was King Olaf the White in Dublin, We have it on the cross at Ballaugh in the curious form Oulaibr, which Dr. Vigfusson says is unique. Olaf was a royal name in Man, and must at one time have been common.

Aumond M'Olave was Bishop of Man from a.d. 1077- 1100, and Olaf or Olave, son of Godred Crovan, com­menced his reign in 1102 or 1113.

'Flann MacAulay killed', a.d. 1178.

ÓlÁfr was a favourite proper name in the north, and was common both in the Landnámabóc and the Flatey- jarbóc.

Manx Names (1890) by Arthur William Moore

1. An English local name, comprising families of various origin. 2. A form of De Cuilly. See Colley-Wellesley.

The Norman People (1874)

A location name in Buckinghamshire, Derbys., Middlsx., Oxfordshire, Staffordshire.

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

Cowley is the name of an ancient Northamptonshire family that held Slyford manor in Yelvertoft, and other property, during the 15th century (Wh.). The incumbent of Holdenby in 1505 bore this name (Wh.). There were families of Cowley living in Harpole and Kilsby in the 17th and 18th centuries (B.). Thomas Cowley founded a school at Donington, Lincolnshire, in 1718 (Allen's "Lincolnshire"). The name has its present home in this county on the Warwickshire border in the Rugby district, and still remains in Kilsby.

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

Cowley Last Name Facts

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

Cowley is found in England more than any other country or territory. It may also occur in the variant forms:. Click here for further potential spellings of this name.

How Common Is The Last Name Cowley? popularity and diffusion

The surname is the 19,739th most frequently held surname on earth. It is borne by around 1 in 262,293 people. This surname is primarily found in Europe, where 42 percent of Cowley live; 41 percent live in Northern Europe and 41 percent live in British Isles. It is also the 1,270,172nd most prevalent first name at a global level, borne by 60 people.

The surname Cowley is most commonly occurring in England, where it is held by 9,905 people, or 1 in 5,625. In England Cowley is primarily found in: Greater London, where 9 percent reside, West Midlands, where 8 percent reside and Merseyside, where 5 percent reside. Not including England this surname occurs in 79 countries. It also occurs in The United States, where 30 percent reside and Australia, where 14 percent reside.

Cowley Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The occurrence of Cowley has changed over time. In England the number of people who held the Cowley surname rose 206 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it rose 461 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Ireland it rose 158 percent between 1901 and 2014; in Wales it rose 428 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it rose 236 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Cowley Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those bearing the Cowley last name is chiefly Catholic (92%) in Ireland.

In The United States those bearing the Cowley surname are 10.1% more likely to be registered with the Republican Party than The US average, with 56.87% being registered with the party.

The amount Cowley earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 77.69% more than the national average, earning R 422,256 per year; in United States they earn 2.5% more than the national average, earning $44,229 USD per year and in Canada they earn 6.54% more than the national average, earning $52,930 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Chowley92111/
Cowlley923/
Coowley920/
Cowliey920/
Cowle91775/
Cowly919/
Chhowley8614/
D'Cowley861/
Cawley8316,190/
Cobley832,434/
Cowler83361/
Cowled83197/
Kowley8326/
Cowlay8319/
Covley8317/
Cowlie8314/
Chowle8313/
Cowlee833/
Cowlet831/
Cowluy830/
Cowlly830/
Cowloy830/
Chawley7767/
Chowlay7753/
Cowlett7712/
Cowless7710/
Chowlya777/
Kowloey774/
Cowelle773/
Cobleya771/
Cowelly771/
Khowley771/
Chowlee771/
Cauwley771/
Cawwley771/
Cawlley770/
Cowlles770/
Coble7313,160/
Kowle7362/
Zowle7327/
Cawly7311/
Covle7311/
Kowly735/
Qowle731/
Cawle730/
Cowla730/
Covly730/
Chhawley7119/
Chhowlay719/
Choubley719/
Cowgille715/
Chowliya711/
Cowletts710/
Kewley672,390/
Chowla671,073/
Couble67554/
Cubley67414/
Cabley67196/
Covlea67156/
Chawle6796/
Kowles6762/
Chowli6756/
Kawley6745/
Covlet6743/
Cavley6723/
Cowlah6722/
Cowlas679/
Choble673/
Cawlay672/
Cawles672/
Covles672/
Khowly672/
Coubly671/
Kowlee671/
Cawlei671/
Kcobly671/
Kowlle671/
Kowlya671/
Cawlie671/
Cowlla671/
Coblee671/
Cawlly670/
Coobly670/
Chovle670/
Cooble670/
Covler670/
Coblly670/

Search for Another Surname

Cowley Reference & Research

Corley DNA Website - A web page dedicated to the genetic research of those who bear the surname and its variants.

Cawley - Colley FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

Cooley FamilyTree DNA Group - A group collating DNA test results for those who bear the surname, includes results of DNA tests and discussions.

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

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

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

The name statistics are still in development, sign up for information on more maps and data

By signing up to the mailing list you will only receive emails specifically about name reference on Forebears and your information will not be distributed to 3rd parties.

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 Cowley
  • 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