Vail Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Vail last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Vail last name
Meaning of the Vail last name: valley. Vail is an English surname for someone who lived in a valley, from Old French val. It is found in Hampshire and Devon. Families of the surname settled on Long Island in the 1600s. Vail in Colorado is named after Charles Vail, a highway engineer. This last name is uncommon.
Arms associated with the Vail name
Heraldry associated with the Vail surname uses a few strong colours, and each coat of arms has its own blazon.
Get your full Vail family history
This is only a glimpse of the Vail story. The full Vail history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Vail coat of arms. Get the full Vail report.
Vail name FAQ
What does the Vail name mean?
Valley. Common variants include Vale, Veal.
Where does the Vail surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Canada and Australia.
Is there a Vail coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Vail coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).