Rowley Surname

11,941st
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 47,024 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
United States
Highest density in:
Guernsey

Rowley Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Rowley,' a parish in the East Riding of Yorks; also a parish in Staffordshire Both places have furnished surnames.

Adam de Roulay, Yorkshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Gervase Rolegh, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Read More About This Surname

Rowley 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
United States20,6611:17,5432,220
England16,2191:3,435461
Australia4,5081:5,988877
Canada1,8151:20,3012,809
Wales7251:4,268464
Ireland6081:7,7451,093
Scotland5361:9,9881,383
New Zealand5201:8,7081,506
South Africa3681:147,22216,772
Trinidad and Tobago1771:7,7061,136
Northern Ireland1311:14,0841,969
Spain591:792,40732,853
Panama531:73,8163,129
Guyana531:14,3821,973
Belize431:8,2671,180
Germany391:2,064,243111,952
Thailand391:1,811,240225,763
United Arab Emirates341:269,47919,099
Zimbabwe321:482,44540,356
France271:2,460,101186,232
Brazil251:8,562,973188,780
Dominican Republic231:453,60614,824
Guernsey221:2,929767
Argentina211:2,035,401100,871
Netherlands191:888,79962,169
Suriname191:29,0855,642
Sweden171:579,22142,433
Belgium151:766,44363,354
Denmark131:434,20928,556
Isle of Man121:7,1521,559
Israel121:713,13647,700
Qatar121:196,50026,891
Malaysia111:2,681,293102,971
Austria101:851,54467,454
Italy91:6,795,188113,457
Russia91:16,013,673414,297
Norway91:571,36544,190
Switzerland81:1,026,61463,315
Jersey81:12,4002,398
Philippines81:12,654,778228,986
Indonesia71:18,892,742520,071
Afghanistan61:5,358,86425,178
Gibraltar61:5,659991
China61:227,886,92811,701
India51:153,413,076951,030
Grenada51:21,7071,054
Hong Kong51:1,467,0975,611
Mexico41:31,031,55163,627
Malta41:107,5681,849
Singapore41:1,376,92628,409
Finland31:1,832,23457,803
Luxembourg31:193,5147,046
Japan31:42,614,76459,022
Vietnam31:30,882,0184,101
Jamaica21:1,434,97411,081
Ecuador21:7,952,92334,269
Kazakhstan21:8,841,248174,813
Czechia21:5,316,734169,646
Turks and Caicos Islands11:34,329862
Barbados11:287,4482,772
Colombia11:47,774,07244,230
Swaziland11:1,298,1991,718
Egypt11:91,935,754132,737
Cyprus11:884,87613,055
Cuba11:11,522,71617,380
Antigua and Barbuda11:99,1712,137
Croatia11:4,228,60499,289
Tunisia11:610,62630,336
Greece11:11,079,790145,225
Taiwan11:23,444,74693,622
South Korea11:51,240,2568,015
Serbia11:7,144,94838,459
Senegal11:14,579,34211,705
Cambodia11:15,487,14614,824
Saudi Arabia11:30,855,81763,028
Romania11:20,077,87089,414
Portugal11:10,418,24125,048
Poland11:38,008,749231,653
Papua New Guinea11:8,153,717181,784
Oman11:3,687,97114,390
Morocco11:34,476,099111,471
Show All Nations
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland3651:12,1371,653
Incidence (high to low)Incidence (low to high)Alphabetic A-ZAlphabetic Z-ARank (high to low)Rank (low to high)
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England7,6441:3,189449
Wales1391:11,284678
Scotland1111:33,7232,752
Guernsey131:2,512419
Isle of Man41:13,5671,192
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States4,7461:10,5811,387

Rowley (293) may also be a first name.

Rowley Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from a geographical locality. 'of Rowley,' a parish in the East Riding of Yorks; also a parish in Staffordshire Both places have furnished surnames.

Adam de Roulay, Yorkshire, 1273. Hundred Rolls.

Gervase Rolegh, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

John Roley, Somerset, 1 Edward III: ibid.

William Roleghe, Somerset, 1 Edward III: ibid.

Johannes de Rouley, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

1607. Richard Rowley, Yorkshire: Register of the University of Oxford.

1613. Benjamin Rowley, Salop: ibid.

Ralph Rowley, of Over Peover, 1631: Wills at Chester.

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

(English) belonging to Rowley = 1 the Rough Lea [Middle English rou, row, etc., Old English rúh, rough, wild + Middle English ley, etc., Old English leáh, a meadow] 2 the Roe-Lea [Middle English ro, Old English rd, a roe + Middle English ley, etc., Old English leáh., a meadow] The Staffs Rowley was Rueleg, Route, in the 12th and 13th cent. The Yorks place was Rouley in the 14th cent. The Lancs Rowley was Roley in the 16th cent.

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

(English) One who came from Rowley (rough meadow), the name of several places in England.

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

The family claim to be of Saxon blood, but the name is traced only to temp. Edward II., when Randolph de Rowley was seated at Carmichan, co. Chester. Lord Langford's family settled in Ireland, temp. James I. There are parishes of Rowley in Yorkshire and Staffordshire.

— Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

(Saxon.) Local. From Row, sweet or pleasant, and ley, a field.

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

From Roelly, Reuilly, or Roilly, near Evreux, Normandy. Ralph de Roileio came over with the Conqueror, and held Stockland, Devon 1083 (Exon. Domesd.) from Ralph Paganel. In 1165 Ralph de Ruelli held a fee in the Viscounty of Evreux, Robert de Roilli in Essex, and Roger de R. in Gloucester (Liber Niger). Galfridus de Roeli witnessed a charter of Gervase Paganel to Tikford Abbey 1187 (Mod. ii. 911). Ralph de Rolli gave tithes in Yorkshire to Holy Trinity, founded by Ralph Paganel of Drax (Mon. i. 564). In 1301 William Hoilly was bailsman for an M.P. Wilts (Parliamentary Writs). The name became spread widely in England, and hence derived the Baronets Rowley and the Viscounts Langford.

— The Norman People (1874)

A location name in Staffordshire, Wiltshire.

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

The family of Rowley owned the manor of Rushden in the beginning of the 17th century; Francis Rowley, a gentleman of Brent Pelham, died in 1686, at the age of 89 (Cus.).

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

Rowley and Rushton are the names of places in the county. The Rushtons are well represented in the district of Stoke - on - Trent.

— Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy
DNA test information
Display Statistics on:

Rowley Demographics

Average Male Rowley Height

177.75 cm

Average male height (US):
175.3 cm
Sample size: 380 (2014)

Average Female Rowley Height

162.95 cm

Average female height (US):
161.5 cm
Sample size: 59 (2014)

Sample is predominantly from Anglosphere countries

View the tallest/shortest surnames in the world

Rowley Last Name Facts

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

The last name Rowley (Arabic: روولى) has its highest incidence in The United States. It may appear as:. Click here to see other possible spellings of Rowley.

How Common Is The Last Name Rowley? popularity and diffusion

It is the 11,941st most frequently held last name on earth. It is borne by approximately 1 in 154,975 people. Rowley occurs predominantly in The Americas, where 46 percent of Rowley reside; 45 percent reside in North America and 45 percent reside in Anglo-North America. Rowley is also the 515,650th most frequently held first name throughout the world, held by 293 people.

The last name is most widely held in The United States, where it is carried by 20,661 people, or 1 in 17,543. In The United States it is most numerous in: California, where 9 percent live, Utah, where 9 percent live and New York, where 6 percent live. Aside from The United States this last name occurs in 80 countries. It also occurs in England, where 34 percent live and Australia, where 10 percent live.

Rowley Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The prevalency of Rowley has changed through the years. In The United States the share of the population with the last name increased 435 percent between 1880 and 2014; in England it increased 212 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Wales it increased 522 percent between 1881 and 2014; in Ireland it increased 167 percent between 1901 and 2014 and in Scotland it increased 483 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Rowley Last Name Statistics demography

The religious devotion of those bearing the Rowley surname is chiefly Catholic (75%) in Ireland.

In The United States Rowley are 16.02% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 62.79% registered to vote for the political party.

The amount Rowley earn in different countries varies greatly. In Norway they earn 39.42% less than the national average, earning 209,645 kr per year; in South Africa they earn 88.61% more than the national average, earning R 448,212 per year; in United States they earn 3.97% more than the national average, earning $44,861 USD per year and in Canada they earn 1.52% more than the national average, earning $50,436 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
Rowleyi923/
Rouwley921/
Rowlley920/
Hrowley920/
Rowle9152/
Rowly9116/
Rawley832,021/
Robley831,415/
Rowlee83376/
Rowler8357/
Rowlay8338/
Rowlie837/
Rovley833/
Rewley832/
Rowlae831/
Rowlly831/
Rowlei831/
Rowlle831/
Rowloy831/
Rawlley77203/
Rouwler776/
Rowless774/
Rhawley772/
Robleya771/
Rrawley771/
Rowleth771/
Rauwley770/
Rowelle770/
Rowwles770/
Rowllee770/
Roble7347,614/
Rawle732,342/
Rowla7325/
Rovle736/
Rewle732/
Rawly731/
Rovly731/
Rhawleiy711/
Rowlettd711/
Rowletts710/
Rowellie710/
Rooble677,127/
Roblee67637/
Rubley67555/
Rouble67253/
Roblle67200/
Robøle67147/
Rabley6787/
Rovles6746/
Rowlas6712/
Robleu677/
Rawlly675/
Roblea674/
Ravley673/
Rawlee673/
Rowlah672/
Robloy672/
Rovlez672/
Rowloa671/
Roblay671/
Rewlle671/
Rowlís671/
Raswle671/
Ruwler670/
Rovler670/
Rawlet670/
Rowlat670/
Rovlet670/
Show All Similar Surnames

Rowley Name Transliterations

TransliterationICU LatinPercentage of Incidence
Rowley in the Arabic language
روولىrwwly-
روليrwly-

Search for Another Surname

Rowley Reference & Research

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

Rowley 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 Rowley
  • 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