Duff (surname)
The surname Duff has several origins. In some cases, it is an Anglicised form of the Gaelic Ó Duibh ("descendant of Dubh"), Mac Giolla Duibh ("son of the servant of Dubh"), Mac Duibh ("son of Dubh"). The surname Duff is also sometimes a short form of Duffin (when of Gaelic origin), and MacElduff (from Mac Giolla Duibh), and Duffy (a name with multiple origins).[1]
The Gaelic dubh ("black", "dark") is a word-element which forms a part of several Gaelic names.[1]
Le Duff is the gallicized variant of the Breton surname An Du which means The Black.
People
- Alan Duff (born 1950), New Zealand writer
- Alexander Duff (missionary) (1806–1878), founder of Scottish Church College, Calcutta
- Alexander Duff (Royal Navy officer) (1862–1933), British admiral
- Andrew Duff, British politician
- Anne Macintosh Duff (1925–2022), Canadian watercolor artist
- Anne-Marie Duff, British actress
- Antony Duff, past head of MI5
- Arthur Duff (1899–1956), Irish composer
- Bob Duff (rugby union) (1925–2006), New Zealand rugby union player and coach
- Cara Leland Duff, later Lady Fairhaven
- Chris Duff, American expedition sea kayaker
- Damien Duff, Irish football manager and former player
- Dick Duff, Canadian ice hockey player
- Douglas Duff, policeman and author
- Duncan Duff, Scottish actor
- Edward Gordon Duff, British bibliographer and librarian
- Elmyra Duff, fictional character from Tiny Toon Adventures
- Ernest Duff (1931–2016), American businessman, lawyer and Mormon bishop
- Captain George Duff of the Royal Navy who commanded HMS Mars at the Battle of Trafalgar
- George F. D. Duff, (1926–2001) Canadian mathematician
- Gordon William Duff, British professor
- Hailey Duff (born 1997), Scottish curler
- Haylie Duff, American actress, Hilary's sister
- Hilary Duff, American pop singer and actress, Haylie's sister
- Howard Duff, American actor
- Jamal Duff, American actor and former NFL American football player
- James Duff (disambiguation)
- Jason Duff, Australian field hockey player
- Jill Duff, Anglican priest and Bishop-designate of Lancaster
- John Duff (disambiguation)
- Louis Le Duff, French billionaire businessman
- Lyman Poore Duff, Canadian Chief Justice
- Michael Duff (physicist), British physicist and string theorist
- Michael Duff (footballer), Northern Ireland footballer
- Sir Michael Duff, 3rd Baronet, British hereditary peer
- Mickey Duff, British boxing promoter
- Sir Mountstuart Elphinstone Grant Duff (1829–1906), Scottish politician and author
- Norwich Duff, British admiral
- Patrick Duff, British singer-songwriter
- Peggy Duff, British activist
- Philip S. Duff, American newspaper editor and politician
- Reggie Duff, Australian cricketer
- Rick Duff, Canadian boxer
- Robert Duff (disambiguation)
- Roger Duff, New Zealand ethnologist
- Shane Duff, Northern Irish footballer
- Stan Duff (1919–1941), English footballer
- Thomas Duff, Irish architect
- Tom Duff, Canadian computer scientist
- Warren B. Duff, film and television writer and producer
- William E. Duff, American writer on counterespionage
In the British Royal Family:
- Princess Alexandra, 2nd Duchess of Fife (1891–1959), née Duff
- Princess Maud, Countess of Southesk (1893–1945), née Duff
Scottish aristocrats:
- William Duff, 1st Earl Fife (c. 1696 – 1763)
- James Duff, 2nd Earl Fife (1729–1809)
- Alexander Duff, 3rd Earl Fife (1731–1811)
- James Duff, 4th Earl Fife (1776–1857)
- James Duff, 5th Earl Fife (1814–1879)
- Alexander Duff, 6th Earl Fife (1849–1912) (became Duke of Fife in 1887)
- Alexander Duff, 1st Duke of Fife (1849–1912)
See also
- Clan MacDuff
- Duff (disambiguation)
- McDuff (disambiguation)
- Le Duff, another surname
References
- ^ a b Duff Family History, Ancestry.com, retrieved 18 October 2012. This webpage cited: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4.