Woodrow is the male

English given name English names are personal names used in, or originating in, England. In England, as elsewhere in the English-speaking world, a complete name usually consists of one or more given names, commonly referred to as first names, and a (most commonly ...

which was originally 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 which may originally derive from a

toponym Toponymy, toponymics, or toponomastics is the study of ''wikt:toponym, toponyms'' (proper names of places, also known as place names and geographic names), including their origins, meanings, usage, and types. ''Toponym'' is the general term for ...

meaning "row of houses by a wood" in

Old English Old English ( or , or ), or Anglo-Saxon, is the earliest recorded form of the English language, spoken in England and southern and eastern Scotland in the Early Middle Ages. It developed from the languages brought to Great Britain by Anglo-S ...

. Other sources suggest the name directly derives from ''woodroe'' ("the border

hedge A hedge or hedgerow is a line of closely spaced (3 feet or closer) shrubs and sometimes trees, planted and trained to form a barrier or to mark the boundary of an area, such as between neighbouring properties. Hedges that are used to separate ...

"), an appellation for a

border guard A border guard of a country is a national security agency that ensures border security. Some of the national border guard agencies also perform coast guard (as in Germany, Italy or Ukraine) and rescue service duties. Name and uniform In diff ...

. Other sources suggest that the name is a variant of wood+reeve, a local official, thus a forest keeper or guardian. The name was made popular, in part, by US president

Woodrow Wilson Thomas Woodrow Wilson (December 28, 1856February 3, 1924) was the 28th president of the United States, serving from 1913 to 1921. He was the only History of the Democratic Party (United States), Democrat to serve as president during the Prog ...

, whose mother's

maiden name When a person (traditionally the wife in many cultures) assumes the family name of their spouse, in some countries and cultures that name replaces the person's previous surname, which in the case of the wife is called the maiden name ("birth name" ...

was Woodrow. The pet form of Woodrow is Woody.

People with the name Woodrow

Given name

People with the given name Woodrow include: * Woodrow A. Abbott (1919–1994), United States Air Force officer who served as director of intelligence, J-2, and inspector general of the U.S. Readiness Command, which was then headquartered at MacDill Air Force Base * Woodrow Adams (1917–1988), American Delta blues guitarist and harmonica player * Woodrow M. Allen (born 1943), American politician from Maryland *

Woodrow Borah Woodrow Wilson Borah (December 23, 1912 in Utica, Mississippi – December 10, 1999 in Berkeley, California) was an American historian of colonial Mexico, whose research contributions on demography, economics, and social structure made him a maj ...

(1912–1999), U.S. historian of colonial Mexico, whose research contributions on demography, economics, and social structure made him a major Latin Americanist *

Woodrow Chambliss Woodrow Lewis Chambliss (October 14, 1914 – January 8, 1981) was an American character actor who appeared in both feature films and television. He is perhaps best known for his appearances as several characters in the TV hit ''Gunsmoke'', whe ...

(1914–1981), American character actor who appeared in both feature films and television * Woodrow Hamilton (born 1992), American football defensive tackle for the Carolina Panthers of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at Ole Miss * Woodrow W. Jones (1914–2002), United States Representative from North Carolina and a United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Western District of North Carolina * Woodrow Lawrence, swimmer at the 1996 Summer Olympics in Atlanta for his country of birth Dominica. Woody finished 60th out of 63 competitors in 50 meter freestyle, with a time of 27.88 seconds *

Woodrow Lloyd Woodrow Stanley Lloyd (July 16, 1913 – April 7, 1972) was a Canadian politician and educator who served as the 8th premier of Saskatchewan from 1961 to 1964. Born in Saskatchewan in 1913, he became a teacher in the early 1930s. He worked as ...

(1913–1972), Canadian politician and educator * Woodrow Wilson Mann (1916–2002), American politician who was the mayor of the capital city of Little Rock, Arkansas, from 1956 to 1957 * Woodrow M. Melvin (1912–1994), American politician in the state of Florida. *

Woodrow Phoenix Woodrow Phoenix is a British comics artist, writer, editorial illustrator, graphic designer, font designer and author of children's books. Phoenix is best known for ''Rumble Strip'', published in 2008, a non-fiction look at the difficult social ...

, British comics artist, writer, editorial illustrator, graphic designer, font designer and author of children's books * Woodrow Bradley Seals (1917–1990), United States District Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas *

Woodrow Stanley Woodrow Stanley (June 12, 1950 – February 15, 2022) was an American Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party politician. He was mayor of Flint, Michigan from 1991 until his recall in 2002, and was a member of the Michigan House of Re ...

(1950–2022), American politician, Democratic Party politician, is a former member of the Michigan House of Representatives from the 34th District. He was a former mayor of Flint, until he was recalled from office in 2002 * Woodrow Swancutt (1915–1993), major general in the United States Air Force *

Woodrow West Woodrow Wilson West (born 19 September 1985) is a Belizean professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Premier League of Belize club Verdes FC and the Belize national team. He has played in Honduras. Club career In February 2008, West ...

(born 1985), Belizean professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for Honduras Progreso *

Woodrow Whitlow Jr. Dr. Woodrow Whitlow Jr. is an American space scientist, currently the associate administrator for Mission Support at NASA. He was appointed to this position by NASA administrator Charles Bolden on February 3, 2010. Prior to this, he was directo ...

, associate administrator for Mission Support at NASA. He was appointed to this position by NASA administrator Charles Bolden on February 3, 2010. Prior to this, he was director of the NASA Glenn Research Center in Cleveland Ohio *

(1856–1924), 28th president of the United States from 1913 to 1921 * Woodrow Wilson (disambiguation), various people

With nickname Woody

Woody Guthrie Woodrow Wilson Guthrie (; July 14, 1912 – October 3, 1967) was an American singer, songwriter, and composer widely considered to be one of the most significant figures in American folk music. His work focused on themes of American Left, A ...

(Woodrow Wilson Guthrie, 1912–1967), US musician *

Woody Hayes Wayne Woodrow "Woody" Hayes (February 14, 1913 – March 12, 1987) was an American college football coach and player. He served as the head football coach at Denison University from 1946 to 1948, Miami University in Oxford, Ohio from 1949 to 195 ...

(Wayne Woodrow Hayes, 1913–1987), US football coach *

Woody Harrelson Woodrow Tracy Harrelson (born July 23, 1961) is an American actor. He first became known for his role as bartender Woody Boyd on the NBC sitcom ''Cheers'' (1985–1993), for which he won a Primetime Emmy Award for Outstanding Supporting Actor in ...

(Woodrow Tracy Harrelson, 1961- ), US television actor

Surname

People with the surname Woodrow include: * Alan Woodrow (born 1952), Canadian opera singer * Allan Woodrow (disambiguation), various people *

Bill Woodrow Bill Woodrow (born 1 November 1948) is a British sculptor. Early years and education Bill Woodrow was born on 1 November 1948 near Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire. He received his education at the Winchester School of Art, Winchester College of ...

(born 1948), British sculptor *

Cauley Woodrow Cauley Woodrow (born 2 December 1994) is an English professional footballer who plays as a forward for club Luton Town. Woodrow began his professional career at Luton Town, in the Conference Premier at the time, for whom he made three appeara ...

(born 1994), English professional footballer who plays as a forward for League One club Barnsley. He made his debut in the Football League for Southend United in September 2013 * George Marshall Woodrow (1846–1911), British botanist * Herbert Woodrow (1883–1974), American psychologist. He served as president of the American Psychological Association in 1941 and was a faculty member at several universities. He was a first cousin of Woodrow Wilson * James Woodrow (disambiguation), multiple people * Joash Woodrow (1927–2006), reclusive English artist *

John Woodrow Major-General Albert John Woodrow (1919–1988) was a British Army officer. Military career Woodrow was commissioned into the Royal Corps of Signals on 25 May 1940 during the Second World War. He became commanding officer of 1 Divisional Signa ...

(1919–1988), British Army officer * Julian Woodrow (born 1996), American singer and songwriter. He is half of the duo "Take 2" (formerly known as "Blackberry Jam"), along with his brother Adrian Chirtea * Keith Woodrow (1927–1997), Scottish native who rose from being a former constable in Argyllshire in 1954 to Senior Superintendent of the colonial Royal Hong Kong Police Force at the time of his retirement in 1975 * Luke Woodrow (1921–2000), Roman Catholic priest, realtor and politician in Newfoundland. He represented Bay of Islands in the Newfoundland House of Assembly from 1975 to 1985 * Mark Woodrow (born 1980), English rugby union player-coach for Dings Crusaders currently playing in the English National League 3 South West * Polly Palfrey Woodrow (1906–1997), American tennis player * Ralph Woodrow, Evangelical Christian minister, speaker, and author * Steven Woodrow, American politician

Fictional characters

Fictional characters named Woodrow include: *

Woody Boyd Woodrow Huckleberry Tiberius Boyd is a fictional character on the American television show ''Cheers'', portrayed by Woody Harrelson. Woody, simple-minded but good-hearted, debuts in the season premiere of the fourth season, "Birth, Death, Love ...

(Woodrow Huckleberry Tiberius Boyd), character on ''Cheers'', played by Woody Harrelson *Captain Woodrow F. Call, Texas Rangers. Main character in Larry McMurtry's

Lonesome Dove ''Lonesome Dove'' is a 1985 Western novel by American writer Larry McMurtry. It is the first published book of the ''Lonesome Dove'' series and the third installment in the series chronologically. It was a bestseller and won the 1986 Pulit ...

, played by Tommy Lee Jones in the TV miniseries. * Woodrow, a Simon Kidgits character developed by Simon Brand Ventures * Woodrow Wilson Smith (Lazarus Long) "

Time Enough for Love ''Time Enough for Love'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert A. Heinlein, first published in 1973. The book made the shortlist for the Nebula, Hugo and Locus awards for best science fiction novel of that year, although it did no ...

" by

Robert A Heinlein Robert Anson Heinlein ( ; July 7, 1907 – May 8, 1988) was an American science fiction author, aeronautical engineer, and naval officer. Sometimes called the "dean of science fiction writers", he was among the first to emphasize scientific acc ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:Woodrow English given names Masculine given names English-language surnames English masculine given names English toponymic surnames