The parsley Surname
parsley Name Meaning and History
English (of Norman origin): altered form of the medieval family
name Passelewe (assimilated by folk etymology to the herb name
parsley). The medieval name is from Old French passe(r)
‘to pass or cross’ + l’ewe ‘the water’, hence a nickname,
probably for a ferryman or a merchant who was in the habit of
traveling overseas, or else someone who had been on a pilgrimage or
crusade. It may also have been used as a topographic name for someone
who lived on the opposite side of a watercourse from the main
settlement.
Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
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