Lou

Short form of Louise
"renowned warrior"

Lou Origin and Meaning

The name Lou is a girl's name of French origin meaning "renowned warrior".

Lou is usually a short form of Louise, Louisa, or Lucy in English-speaking countries, when Lou is used for girls at all. But in France and Germany, it's a fashionable choice all on its own, sure to gain even more widespread style credibility since Heidi Klum and Seal chose it for their daughter.

At one time Lou was pervasive as a girl's middle name (Mary Lou, Betty Lou), and seems to be making something of a comeback--Louis C.K. has a Mary Lou and Keri Russell named her daughter Willa Lou.

# 955 in the US

Lou Rank in US Top 1000

# 495 on Nameberry

Lou Rank in Nameberry Top 1000

Lou Popularity

Famous People Named Lou

  • Lou Henry Hoover
    US First Lady as wife of President Herbert Hoover
  • Louise "Lou" Hoffner
    German pop singer
  • Louise "Lou" Andreas
    Salomé, Russian psychoanalyst
  • Louise "Lou" Teasdale
    English hair and makeup artist
  • Lou Ann Barton
    American singer
  • Lou Ann Walker
    American memoirist
  • Mary Lou Retton
    American gymnast
  • Mary
    Lou Daniels, American tennis player
  • Mary Lou Kolbenschlag
    American actress
  • Betty Lou Gerson
    American actress
  • Betty Lou Bredemus
    American actress; mother of actress Julia Roberts
  • Betty Lou Holland
    American actress
  • Betty Lou Keim
    American actress
  • Amy Lou Adams
    American actress
  • Lou Sulola Samuel (b. 2009)
    daughter of model Heidi Klum and singer Seal
  • Willa Lou Deary (b. 2011)
    daughter of actress Keri Russell
  • Bowie Lou Bellour (b. 2014)
    daughter of designer Rebecca Minkoff and Gavin Bellour

Lou in Pop Culture

  • Lou Ellen
    character in "Percy Jackson and the Olympians" series
  • Lou
    Ann Poovey, character on TV's "Gomer Pyle, U.S.M.C."
  • Lou Ann Ruiz
    character in the novel "The Bean Trees" by Barbara Kingsolver
  • Louise Ada "Lou" Beale
    character on British soap opera EastEnders
  • Lou
    character on TV's "Bunk'd"
  • Lou Fleming
    character in the "Heartland" series by Lauren Brooke
  • Louise "Lou" Friedman
    character in movie "Blended"
  • Cindy Lou Who
    character in Dr Seuss' "How the Grinch Stole Christmas!"
  • "Skip to My Lou"
    popular children's song
  • Louise "Lou" Jackson
    character in TV show Love My Way
  • Louisa "Lou" Clark
    Main character in "Me Before You" by JoJo Moyes
  • Lou Miller
    character in "Ocean's 8"