Yule Family History

Scottish: from the northern Middle English personal name Yol (Old Norse Iól Ióli Old Danish Iuli Old Swedish Iule, a short form of names in Iól- Iúl- which is thought to derive from Old Norse ighul ‘sea urchin’). In Scotland, most of the earliest bearers of the surname are those of burgesses whose families may have originated in northern England.

The name was identical in pronunciation and spelling with (and therefore probably confused with) the Middle English name for Christmas; see 2 below. Both names underwent the phonetic change of Middle English /o:/ to early Modern English and Older Scots /u:/ whence the common modern spelling Yule.

Perhaps also a nickname from Older Scots ʒule ‘Yule Christmas’ (Old English geōl Old Norse jól), given to one born on Christmas Day or with some other connection with that time of year. This was originally the name of a pagan midwinter festival which was later appropriated by the Christian Church for celebration of the birth of Christ.

However, there is no clear evidence of this origin for the surname.