indicate the level to which a name has been verified.
Type Surname (from given name)
Usage English
Meaning & History
Either a patronymic surname derived from the given name Dow, a medieval variant of Daw (which was a diminutive of David), or else a metronymic form of the medieval feminine name Dowce, literally "sweet, pleasant", from Old French dolz, dous (cf. Dulcie). A literary bearer of the surname was British poet Ernest Dowson (1867-1900).