Govan Surname Guide

Your Govan ancestor may well appear as Gow in earlier records. The name is generally explained as “The worker in metals, a smith; one who came from Govan, in Lanarkshire”. Govan is listed among the recognised spellings of Gow. Regional accents shaped spellings long before dictionaries fixed them. You may also find the name written Gowan and Gove.

According to the 2010 US Census, the Govan surname had 3,188 bearers. It sits within the 25,000 most common last names in the country.

Heraldry is personal: arms associated with the Gow surname were borne by specific families, and sharing the name does not mean sharing the blazon. For the full story, order the Govan surname pack.