Save Type Surname (from location) Usage English Pronounced Pron. /ˈlɔɹ.tən/(American English) /ˈlɔː.tən/(British English) [key·simplify] Meaning & History habitational name from any of the places so named in Cumbria probably so named from an Old English river name Hlóra meaning "the roaring one" and Old English tun "settlement".