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Surname Etymology and Meaning of QUAIL

Name meanings and etymologies are often disputed. The information here is compiled from freely available sources, and no claims whatsoever are made for accuracy, either historical or etymological.

1. Irish and Scottish: Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Phóil (see McFall).
2. Irish: variant of Quill 1.
3. English: from Middle English quaille ‘quail’, a nickname for a timorous, lecherous, or fat person, all qualities that were ascribed to the bird.
4. In one family this is an Americanized form of the Ashkenazic Jewish ornamental surname Kvalvaser, meaning ‘spring water’ in Yiddish.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names (2003)