''Cowley'' is a surname in the

English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the ...

Etymology

The surname ''Cowley'' has numerous origins. In some cases it originated as a

habitational name In some cultures, a surname, family name, or last name is the portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family, tribe or community. Practices vary by culture. The family name may be placed at either the start of a person's full name ...

, derived from any of the several places in

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

named ''Cowley''. One such place, in

Gloucestershire Gloucestershire ( abbreviated Glos) is a county in South West England. The county comprises part of the Cotswold Hills, part of the flat fertile valley of the River Severn and the entire Forest of Dean. The county town is the city of Gl ...

, is derived from two

Old English Old English (, ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the early Middle Ages. It was brought to Great Britain by Anglo-Saxon settlers in the mid-5th c ...

elements: the first, ''cu'', meaning "

cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...

"; the second element, ''leah'', meaning "woodland clearing". Two other places are located in

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands, England. It includes much of the Peak District National Park, the southern end of the Pennine range of hills and part of the National Forest. It borders Greater Manchester to the nor ...

which are derived from the Old English ''col'', meaning "coal" (in reference to charcoal). Another place is located near

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, which can has two possible derivations: the first is from the Old English ''cofa'', meaning "shelter" or "bay"; the second possibility is that this place name is derived from the Old English personal name ''Cofa''. Other places are located in Buckinghamshire,

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devo ...

, Oxfordshire, and Staffordshire: these place names are thought to be derived from elements meaning "the wood or clearing of ''Cufa''", although they may also contain topographical elements as well. In some cases the surname ''Cowley'' is derived from the

Irish-language Irish (Standard Irish: ), also known as Gaelic, is a Goidelic language of the Insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, which is a part of the Indo-European language family. Irish is indigenous to the island of Ireland and was the ...

surname '' Mac Amhlaoibh'', meaning "son of ''

Amhlaoibh Aulay is a Scottish masculine given name. It is an Anglicisation of the Scottish Gaelic ''Amhladh'', ''Amhlaidh'', ''Amhlaigh'', and ''Amhlaibh''. The standard Irish Gaelic form of these names is ''Amhlaoibh'' (pronounced "ow-liv", and "owl-lee"); ...

''". which cited: for the surname "Cowley". The surname ''Cowley'' can also be of

Manx language Manx ( or , pronounced or ), also known as Manx Gaelic, is a Gaelic language of the insular Celtic branch of the Celtic language family, itself a branch of the Indo-European language family. Manx is the historical language of the Manx p ...

origin, where it has the same meaning as that of Irish, and has a variant, Kewley.

Families

The surname has been borne by a noted Irish family, who were one of the so-called ' Ten Tribes of Kilkenny'. The ten families bore the surnames '' Archdekin'', ''

Archer Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

'', ''Cowley'', ''Knaresborough'', '' Langton'', '' Lawless'', '' Ley'', ''Ragget'', ''Rothe'', and '' Shee''. Of the ten, only the Shees were considered to be of Irish ancestry; the nine others, including the Cowleys, were of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

origin.

People with the surname

Abraham Cowley Abraham Cowley (; 161828 July 1667) was an English poet and essayist born in the City of London late in 1618. He was one of the leading English poets of the 17th century, with 14 printings of his ''Works'' published between 1668 and 1721. Early ...

(1618–1667), English poet *

R Adams Cowley R Adams Cowley (July 25, 1917 – October 27, 1991) was an American surgeon considered a pioneer in emergency medicine and the treatment of Shock (circulatory), shock Physical trauma, trauma. Called the "Father of Trauma Medicine", he was the foun ...

(1917–1991), American surgeon * Alan Cowley, British professor of chemistry *Sir

Alfred Cowley Sir Alfred Sandlings Cowley (24 April 1848 – 1 December 1926) was a politician in Queensland, Australia. He was a Member of the Queensland Legislative Assembly. Early life Cowley was born in Fairford, Gloucestershire, England, the so ...

(1848–1926), Australian politician * A.E. Cowley (1849–1916), missionary in Sindh, then in western India *

Ambrose Cowley William Ambrosia Cowley was a 17th-century English people, English buccaneer who surveyed the Galápagos Islands during his circumnavigation of the world while serving under several Captains such as John Eaton (pirate), John Eaton, John Cook (pir ...

, 17th century English explorer *

Anne Cowley Anne Pyne Cowley is an American astronomer known for her spectroscopic observations of stars and stellar black holes, including the 1983 discovery of a likely black hole in LMC X-3, an X-ray binary star system in the Large Magellanic Cloud. This ...

, American astronomer *Sir Arthur Cowley (librarian) (1861–1931), Bodley's Librarian at the University of Oxford *

Bill Cowley William Mailes "Cowboy" Cowley (June 12, 1912 – December 31, 1993) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League for the St. Louis Eagles and Boston Bruins. Described as the Wayne Gretzky of h ...

(1912–1993), Canadian ice hockey player * Charles Henry Cowley VC (1872–1916), British naval officer * Darren Cowley (born 1976), English former cricketer * Edward Cowley, New Zealand-Samoan facilitator, entertainer and drag queen * Elizabeth Jill Cowley (born 1940), British botanist * Elwood Cowley (born 1944), Canadian former educator and politician *

Ern Cowley Ernest Clyde Cowley (17 August 1892 – 20 October 1975) was an Australian rules footballer who played for Carlton in the Victorian Football League (VFL). Background Cowley came to Carlton from Brunswick and had a strong debut season, kick ...

(1892–1975), Australian rules footballer * Francis Cowley (born 1957), English former professional footballer * Garrick Cowley (born 1982), British rugby player * Gillian Cowley (born 1955), Zimbabwean hockey player * Hannah Cowley (artist) (born 1984), British actress and director *

Hannah Cowley (writer) Hannah Cowley (14 March 1743 – 11 March 1809) was an English playwright and poet. Although Cowley's plays and poetry did not enjoy wide popularity after the 19th century, critic Melinda Finberg rates her as "one of the foremost playwrights of ...

(1743–1809), English dramatist and poet *

Harry Cowley Harry Cowley (born 1890, died 1971) was a working class organizer, social activist and anti-fascist in Brighton, England. Biography Born in 1890 in Brighton, and working as a chimney sweep, he became involved in grass-roots social activism from t ...

(1890–1971), British social activist *

Jack Cowley John Bennett Cowley (3 February 1877 – 21 December 1926) was an English footballer who made 68 appearances in the Football League playing for Lincoln City. He played at left half A midfielder is an outfield position in association ...

(1877–1926), English footballer * James Cowley (1919–2009), British soldier * Jason Cowley (born 1966), British journalist, magazine editor and writer * Jerry Cowley (born 1952), Irish barrister, doctor and politician *

Joe Cowley (baseball) Joseph Alan Cowley (born August 15, 1958) is an American former professional baseball pitcher, who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Atlanta Braves (1982), New York Yankees (1984–1985), Chicago White Sox (1986), and Philadelphia Ph ...

, (born 1958), American former professional baseball player *

Joe Cowley Joe Cowley is a columnist writer for the ''Chicago Sun-Times''. Cowley, a graduate of Kent State University, served the same role for the ''Sun-Times'' sister publication, the Tinley Park, Illinois, Tinley Park, Illinois ''Daily Southtown'', for ...

, American journalist * John Cowley (disambiguation) *

Joy Cowley Cassia Joy Cowley (; born 7 August 1936) is a New Zealand author best known for her children's fiction, including the popular series of books Mrs. Wishy-Washy. Cowley started out writing novels for adults, and her first book, ''Nest in a Fal ...

(born 1936), New Zealand novelist * Leonard Philip Cowley (1913–1973), American Roman Catholic bishop *

Malcolm Cowley Malcolm Cowley (August 24, 1898 – March 27, 1989) was an American writer, editor, historian, poet, and literary critic. His best known works include his first book of poetry, ''Blue Juniata'' (1929), his lyrical memoir, ''Exile's Return ...

(1898–1989), American novelist * Mario Coyula Cowley, Cuban architect and architectural historian * Matthew Cowley (1897–1953), American missionary and Mormon leader * Matthias F. Cowley (1858–1940), American Mormon leader * Michael Cowley, Australian physiologist *

Neil Cowley Neil Cowley (born 5 November 1972) is an English contemporary pianist and composer. He has also released music as part of Fragile State, the Green Nuns of the Revolution, and the Neil Cowley Trio. With his trio, he appeared on '' Later... with ...

(born 1972), British jazz pianist * Nigel Cowley (born 1953), English former county cricketer * Patrick Cowley (1950–1982), American musician * Peter Cowley,

British jump racing Champion Jockey In Great Britain's National Hunt racing, the title of Champion Jockey is bestowed on the jockey who has ridden the most winning horses during a racing season. From its inception in 1900 through to 1925, the award was given to the jockey who had r ...

(1908) * Peggy Cowley (1890–1970), American landscape painter * Philip Cowley, British political scientist * Richard Cowley (died 1619), English actor * Richard Colley (–1758), the grandfather of

Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...

, changed his surname to Wesley after he inherited estates from his cousin, Garret Wesley, in 1728 * Robert Cowley (judge) (–1546), English-born judge who was Master of the Rolls in Ireland *

Robert Cowley Robert Cowley is an American military historian, who writes on topics in American and European military history ranging from the Civil War through World War II. He has held several senior positions in book and magazine publishing and is the foundi ...

, American military historian * Roger Cowley (1939–2015), British physicist * Russell Cowley (born 1983), British ice hockey player * Samuel P. Cowley (1899–1934), American FBI agent * Sarah Cowley (disambiguation) * Simon Cowley (cricketer) (born 1979), English former cricketer *

Simon Cowley Simon Cowley (born 4 October 1980) is a former Australian breaststroke swimmer. In March 2008, he was assaulted by Nick D'Arcy at a pub in Sydney. See also * List of Commonwealth Games medallists in swimming (men) This is the complete l ...

(born 1980), Australian former breaststroke swimmer *

Steven Cowley Sir Steven Charles Cowley (born 1959) is a British theoretical physicist and international authority on nuclear fusion and astrophysical plasmas. He has served as director of the United States Department of Energy (DOE) Princeton Plasma Physic ...

(born 1985), British physicist * Terence Cowley (1928–2012), Australian cricket player * Walter Cowley (–1548), Irish lawyer and politician * Wanda Cowley (born 1924), New Zealand children's writer *

Wayne Cowley Wayne Robert Cowley (born December 4, 1964) is a Canadian-born British retired professional ice hockey goaltender who played in one game in the National Hockey League for the Edmonton Oilers during the 1993–94 season, on December 11, 1993, agai ...

(born 1964), Canadian retired professional ice hockey player

Fictional

* George Cowley, one of the main characters in the TV series ''The Professionals''

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Cowley English-language surnames Anglicised Irish-language surnames Manx-language surnames English toponymic surnames Patronymic surnames