Woolf

Woolf is a surname of English origin, commonly a variant of Wolfe or Wolf derived from the Germanic personal name Wulf, meaning wolf. The name has been borne by a range of individuals in English-speaking countries and is related to other spellings such as Wolf, Wolfe, and Woolfe.

The best-known bearer of the name is Virginia Woolf (1882–1941), an English novelist, essayist, and central figure in the Bloomsbury Group. Her modernist novels, including Mrs Dalloway and To the Lighthouse, and her essays on literature and gender have had a lasting influence on 20th-century writing and feminist thought.

Leonard Woolf (1880–1969), Virginia Woolf’s husband, was a political theorist, author, and publisher. He co-founded the Hogarth Press, which published Virginia Woolf’s work and contributed to the dissemination of modernist literature in the early 20th century.

Beyond these figures, the surname appears among various professionals and scholars in the United Kingdom, the United States, and other Anglophone regions. The name’s spelling variants reflect historical changes in language and immigration patterns, but all share a common origin linked to the old personal name Wulf.

Overall, Woolf is recognized primarily for its literary associations through Virginia Woolf, while also representing a broader linguistic lineage tied to the older wolf-derived naming tradition.