Rowe is an English surname of more than one origin: it most often described someone who lived by a "row of houses" or a "hedgerow", from the Middle English row, and sometimes it is a pet form of Rolf or Rollo. As a first name it rides the wave of short surname names like Crew and Reid. Rowe had fewer than five births in 2000, entered the lower ranks in the 2010s and has reached number 2636 in 2025, its highest yet, with 50 boys.