Fallow Family History

From Middle English falwe falow falg(he), meaning ‘fallow untilled arable land, land recently brought into cultivation’. The surname may be topographic for someone who lived on or by fallow land, or toponymic for someone from a place so named, such as Faugh in Hayton (Cumb), which is recorded as Faughe in 1589.

Perhaps it is also derived from Middle English falwe falow, meaning ‘pale; reddish or brownish yellow, tawny’, which may describe the hair or complexion of a person. Compare Favell.

Additionally, it is sometimes considered a variant of Farlow. Note the variation in the surname of Thomas Falowes in 1524 and Thomas Farelowe in 1525, both found in Subsidy Rolls (Albrighton by Shrewsbury, Shrops).