Howell (name) explained

Howell
Meaning:"Eminent", "prominent"
Region:Wales, Great Britain
Language:Welsh
Variant:Hoel, Howells, Howel, Howle Hugh, Hywel
Footnotes:Frequency comparisons:[1]
Motto:Virtus in arduo
(Latin for 'Valour in difficulty')
Pronunciation:
in Welsh ˈhəu̯.ɛl/
Origin:Celtic, Old Welsh

Howell (in Welsh pronounced as /ˈhəu̯.ɛl/) is a surname and given name originating from Wales. As a surname, it is not particularly common among those of Welsh ancestry, as it is an anglicized form of the Welsh name Hywel. It originates in a dynasty of kings in Wales and Brittany in the 9th and 10th centuries, most notably king Hywel Dda ("Howel the Good") and three Welsh royal houses of that time onwards. The royal House of Tudor was also descended from them. Today, nearly 200,000 people bear this surname.

Etymology and history

Welsh origin

The name Howell originates from the Welsh masculine given name, Hywel, meaning "eminent" or "prominent", derived from the Old Welsh given name, Higuel.[2] Literally meaning, hy- (“good”) + gwêl (“sight”), "well-seen".

The first known recording of the name comes in the Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, referring to a Brittonic king known as Huwal of the West Welsh in 926 AD.[3] Many scholars believe this to be referring to the 10th-century law giving Welsh king, Hywel Dda,[4] [5] [6] to which many Howells claim their descent from.[7] He is the most famous historical bearer of the name, and was recorded with the title King of the Britons by 950 AD.

Howell as a surname is derived from the name of an ancestor, meaning the "son of Hoel" (and variants). Its original Welsh form would use the prefix ap, for example: Owain ap Hywel ("Owain son of Hywel").[8] The Latin motto for the Howell family name is Virtus in arduo ("valour in difficulty").[9] Howell (and its variant forms) as a given name has been popular in honour of Hywel Dda since the Middle Ages.[10]

In Geoffrey of Monmouth's 12th century pseudohistorical Historia regum Britanniae, there is mention of a late 5th and early 6th-century Brittonic king known as Hywel the Great, said to be born in around 500 AD. This is the earliest claimed account of the name, although Hywel the Great is generally considered as legendary, he appears in Welsh mythology and the Matter of Britain as a "king of Brittany". He is considered a Welsh saint and was said to have been a relative of the legendary King Arthur.[11] [12]

In England

After the English Conquest of Wales in the 13th century, followed by the Laws in Wales Acts 1535 and 1542 in the 16th century, Wales was incorporated into the Kingdom of England. This resulted in the migration of Howells into Western England from Wales, particularly in counties along the Anglo-Welsh border. Many settlers anglicized their surnames from their original Welsh forms, such as "Hywel" to instead "Howell".[13] In the Eastern English counties, the name was brought by Breton settlers after the Norman Conquest. The Breton forms of the name were Houuel, Huwel, Huwal, and Howael.[14] There is also a claim for the surname having separate English origins, from the place-name Howell found in Lincolnshire and derived from the Old English, hugol meaning “mound” or “hillock.”

In the British Empire

As a result of English colonialism and subsequently, the British Empire, descendants of the Howell family name can be found across the world. Today, It is most prevalently found in the core Anglosphere countries, such as the United Kingdom, the United States, Canada, Australia and New Zealand.[15] However, during the period of slavery in the British colonies, many slaves were known by the surname of their masters, or adopted those surnames upon their emancipation. Some descendants of these formerly enslaved peoples, continue to bear these surnames today, particularly in countries in the West Indies.[16]

Geographical distribution

As of 2014, over 74.0% of all known bearers of the surname Howell were residents of the United States, 12.3% are in the British Isles (10.4% in England, 1.3% in Wales, 0.2% in Scotland, 0.2% in Ireland, 0.2% in Northern Ireland) 4.6% in Australia, 3.0% in Canada, 1.7% in Jamaica, 0.8% in South Africa and 0.7% in New Zealand.

Country1880-81% of Howells2014% of Howells% Pop. Change 1880–2014
United States22,96564.5%144,93074.0%+531.1%
England10,13428.5%20,39910.4%+101.3%
Wales2,3736.7%2,4611.3%+3.7%
Australiano datano data9,1374.6%not applicable
Canada5,9683.0%
Jamaica3,3441.7%
South Africa1,6690.8%
New Zealand1,3200.7%
Other countries1320.3%6,5583.3%
Total35,604100%195,786100%+449.9% (total)

Notable people with the name include:

Surname

A

B

C

D

E

F

G

H

I

J

K

L

M

N

P

R

S

T

V

W

Y

Given name

Fictional characters

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Howell Surname Meaning and Distribution . forebears.co.uk. Retrieved 21 January 2014
  2. Web site: Campbell . Mike . Meaning, origin and history of the name Hywel . 2023-01-31 . Behind the Name . en.
  3. Web site: Surname Database: Howell Last Name Origin . 2023-01-31 . The Internet Surname Database.
  4. Book: Charles-Edwards, T. M. . Wales and the Britons 350-1064 . Oxford University Press . 2013 . 978-0-19-821731-2 . Oxford . 510–511 . Thomas Charles-Edwards.
  5. Encyclopedia: 1991 . Hywel (Dda) ap Cadell king of Deheubarth d. 950 . A Biographical Dictionary of Dark Age Britain . Seaby . Kirby . D. P. . Ann Williams . 1-85264-047-2 . Alfred P. Smyth . D. P. Kirby.
  6. Book: Foot, Sarah . Æthelstan: the first king of England . Yale University Press . 2011 . 978-0-300-12535-1 . 20 . Sarah Foot.
  7. Web site: Howell Surname Meaning, History & Origin . 2023-02-01 . Select Surnames . en-US.
  8. Book: Bardsley, Charles Wareing Endell . A dictionary of English and Welsh surnames . H. Frowde . 1896 . 618 . en .
  9. Book: Fairbairn, James . Fairbairn's Book of Crests of the families of Great Britain and Ireland . T. C. & E. C. Jack . 1905 . 4th . 90 . en.
  10. Web site: Howell Name Meaning & Howell Family History . 2023-01-31 . www.ancestry.co.uk.
  11. Web site: Geoffrey of Monmouth . Geoffrey of Monmouth . Late 12th century . Historia regum Britanniae . History of the Kings of Britain . 2023-02-23 . British Library . Latin.
  12. Web site: Ford . David Nash . Hywel the Great of Brittany . 2023-02-23 . Early British Kingdoms.
  13. Web site: Howell Surname Origin, Meaning & Last Name History . 2023-02-01 . forebears.io.
  14. Web site: Howell Name Meaning, Family History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms . 2023-02-01 . HouseOfNames . January 2000 . EN.
  15. Web site: Howell Diaspora - 2014 . 2023-02-01 . forebears.io.
  16. Web site: Ancestors from the Caribbean - Ethnicity and Surnames . Norfolk Record Office.

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