Other Forms FormsRolfe, Rou, Rollo, Hrolfr, Hrólfr
Meaning & History
English: Composed of the Germanic elements hrod ‘renown’ + wulf ‘wolf’. This name was especially popular among Nordic peoples in the contracted form Hrólfr and seems to have reached England by two separate channels; partly through its use among pre-Conquest Scandinavian settlers, partly through its popularity among the Normans, who, however, generally used the form Rou (see Rollo). North German: from a personal name, a contracted form of Rudolf.
From the Middle English personal name Rolf, composed of the Germanic elements hrōd "renown" and wulf "wolf". This name was especially popular among Nordic peoples in the contracted form Hrólfr, and seems to have reached England by two separate channels; partly through its use among pre-Conquest Scandinavian settlers, partly through its popularity among the Normans, who, however, generally used the form Rou(l) (see Rollo).