Large is an

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

surname In many societies, a surname, family name, or last name is the mostly hereditary portion of one's personal name that indicates one's family. It is typically combined with a given name to form the full name of a person, although several give ...

, with variants including Lardge and Lurge. Its meaning is variable, though it may derive from the

Norman French Norman or Norman French (, , Guernésiais: , Jèrriais: ) is a '' langue d'oïl'' spoken in the historical and cultural region of Normandy. The name "Norman French" is sometimes also used to describe the administrative languages of '' Angl ...

adjective, ''large'' (meaning "generous" or "big" s in, "that's big of you", meaning generous, as well as large in size, as it is found in the surname "le Large" in English records dating back as far as the 13th century. Harrison's work on English surnames gives the following: "Large (adjectival: French, Latin) Big; Generous iddle English Old French ''large''; Latin ''larg-us, -a'', [meaningabundant, liberal">eaning.html" ;"title="iddle English Old French ''large''; Latin ''larg-us, -a'', [meaning">iddle English Old French ''large''; Latin ''larg-us, -a'', [meaningabundant, liberal He gives an early citation for the name: ''Austin Belz from the Hundred Rolls,'' a reference dating to 1273. He also provides a quotation showing the word in its older sense of ''generous'', ''full'', ''liberal'' or ''ample'' in its literary context: ''So large of [gift] and free was she'' (from Geoffrey Chaucer, Chaucer's ''Romance of the Rose'' I168) Another variant surname, "de Large", appears to be continental European rather than English in origin. Henry Brougham Guppy's survey circa 1881, based on local British directories, places Large as a surname local to Wiltshire, North Wiltshire, and considers it to have particular prevalence among

yeoman farmer Yeoman is a noun originally referring either to one who owns and cultivates land or to the middle ranks of servants in an English royal or noble household. The term was first documented in mid-14th-century England. The 14th century witnessed ...

s.(Guppy, 1890) According to the

International Genealogical Index The International Genealogical Index (IGI) is a database of genealogical records, compiled from several sources, and maintained by the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Originally created in 1969, the index was intended to help track the ...

, the surname is also found in many other English counties; in

Ireland Ireland (, ; ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe. Geopolitically, the island is divided between the Republic of Ireland (officially Names of the Irish state, named Irelan ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

and other

English language English is a West Germanic language that developed in early medieval England and has since become a English as a lingua franca, global lingua franca. The namesake of the language is the Angles (tribe), Angles, one of the Germanic peoples th ...

countries; in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

, and, more rarely, in the

Scandinavian countries Scandinavia is a subregion of northern Europe, with strong historical, cultural, and linguistic ties between its constituent peoples. ''Scandinavia'' most commonly refers to Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. It can sometimes also refer to the Scan ...

. Large is also found in Latin America countries such as

Colombia Colombia, officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country primarily located in South America with Insular region of Colombia, insular regions in North America. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Caribbean Sea to the north, Venezuel ...

where all families surnamed Large are related. People with the name Large, or one of its variants, include:

People

* Sir Andrew Large (born 1942), British, Monetary Policy Committee member *

Bonnie Large __NOTOC__ The following is a list of Playboy Playmates of 1973. ''Playboy'' magazine names their Playboy Playmate, Playmate of the Month each month throughout the year. January Miki Garcia (born February 17, 1947, in Kingman, Arizona) is an Ame ...

(born 1952), American, ''Playboy'' model *

Brian Large Brian James Large (born 16 February 1939 in London, England) is a television director and author. He is among the world's foremost TV directors specializing in opera and classical music. Biography Studies Large studied at the Royal Academy of Mu ...

(born 1939), British opera video director * Donald "Lofty" Large (1930–2006), British soldier and author *

Eddie Large Edward Hugh McGinnis (25 June 1941 – 2 April 2020), better known by the stage name Eddie Large, was a British comedian. He was best known as one half of the double act Little and Large, with Syd Little (the stage name of Cyril Mead). Early l ...

(1941–2020), British comedian * Ernest Charles Large (1902–1976), English mycologist, phytopathologist, and novelist * John Large, British engineer * Josaphat-Robert Large (1942–2017), Haitian-American poet * Rob Large (born 1981), English cricketer * Robert Large (died 1441), English, Lord Mayor of London (1439–1440) and apprentice master of

William Caxton William Caxton () was an English merchant, diplomat and writer. He is thought to be the first person to introduce a printing press into Kingdom of England, England in 1476, and as a Printer (publishing), printer to be the first English retailer ...

, England's first printer *

Stephen Large Stephen Large is an English, London-based keyboard player, composer, arranger, and long-term member of UK band Squeeze. Biography As well as his work with Squeeze, Stephen Large is musical director (touring keyboard player and arranger) for C ...

, English musician *

Storm Large Storm Large (born Susan Storm Large, June 25, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, actress and author. She attracted national attention as a contestant on the CBS reality television show '' Rock Star: Supernova''. A resident of Portland, Ore ...

(born 1969), American singer

Variants

* Robert C. De Large (1842–1874), American politician

References

* Carroll, Linda Largin, ''The Largin Legacy'', 1995, p. 15 (date of reference to William le Large from the Hundred Rolls) * Guppy, Henry Brougham. ''Homes of Family Names in Great Britain''. London: Harrison, 1890. * International Genealogical Index, www.familysearch.org * Harrison, Henry ''Surnames of the United Kingdom: A Concise Etymological Dictionary'', 1912/1918, reprinted 1969 and 1996, p. 264 * Reidy, John; Kurath, Hans; Lewis, Robert E.; Kuhn, Sherman M., ''Middle English Dictionary'', Language Arts & Disciplines, 1971, p. 663 (for instances of the surname) pp. 657–663 (for the adjectival and adverbial uses of the word) {{surname