Harrold
A surname with two main roots: it can mean “son of Harold” or come from the place-name Harrold in Bedfordshire.
The #6,884 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 63,216 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Harrold is usually explained in two ways. First, it may be a patronymic surname meaning “son of Harold,” from the Old Norse personal name Haraldr, later found in English as Harold. Second, it can be locational, taken from Harrold in Bedfordshire, a place-name built from Old English elements usually understood as a personal name plus “wood” or a cleared area, though early sources vary in how they analyze it. In practice, the surname may have arisen independently in more than one family.
History
The name is recorded in medieval and later English forms such as Harold, Harrold, and Harrod. Bardsley treats it as both a baptismal surname and a local surname from Harrold, Bedfordshire. Irish genealogical sources also list Harrold among names used in Ireland, but do not change the underlying English origin.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same surname spelling could point either to ancestry from a man named Harold or to ancestry from the Bedfordshire place called Harrold.
From the historical record
“cery from 1325. D'Alton. HARROLD. The Irish family suppose themselves to have been introduced into that country on its invasion by the Danes, which is very prol^ably the case. HASLER.* The name is said to be Ger- man— a jester, from haselircn, to jest, play, or trifle. It occurs at Basle in Switzer- land. HAT. 1.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom