Quarrell Family History

From Middle English Old French quarel quarrel carrel denoting a short heavy square-headed bolt for a cross-bow arbalest or siege engine. Its use as a nickname might have had an occupational connotation for someone who made or used quarrels or it may have been used figuratively for a thickset or stout person.

Compare Bolt Quarry. For someone who lived by or worked at a quarry (Middle English quarrel), synonymous with Quarry. Middle English forms with a preposition would be needed to confirm this explanation.