Marlowe as a Baby Name. Meaning and Origin of Marlowe

What is the meaning of the name Marlowe ?

The baby name Marlowe is a Unisex name , 2 syllables long and is pronounced MAR-loh (IPA: /ˈmɑrloʊ/; UK: /ˈmɑː(r)ləʊ/).

Marlowe is English in Origin.

Marlowe is an English surname–turned–given name rooted in Old English. It comes from place‑names like Marlow in Buckinghamshire, built from mere “lake, pool” and hlāw “hill, burial mound,” giving meanings such as “hill by the lake” or “mound by the marsh.” Variant spellings include Marlow, Marlo, and Marloe; short forms sometimes appear as Marly or Lo. The name is used across the English‑speaking world and functions as a true unisex choice.

As a surname it is documented from the Middle Ages, most famously borne by the Renaissance playwright and poet Christopher Marlowe. In the 20th century it gained a modern, literary‑noir sheen through Raymond Chandler’s detective Philip Marlowe. Adoption as a first name increased in the late 20th and early 21st centuries, boosted by the fashion for surnames as given names and occasional celebrity use, with rising popularity especially for girls while remaining familiar for boys.