A Scottish, Irish and English surname of Russell comes the name of ‘Rousel'. It is an Old French term for someone with red hair or a red face.

Two other spellings for Russell are Rusell and Russel.

In England the Russell name is in London and along the southeast coastal counties. Further north in England the Russell individuals live in Yorkshire. Scotland mainly has the county of Lanarkshire with a higher number of Russell families.

Ireland has numerous families with the Russell surname.

The states of Illinois, New York Massachusetts, Ohio, California and Pennsylvania in the United States have the higher percentage of Russell families.

Famous: Charles Marion Russell (artist of the American West), George Russell (music composer), John Russell (Scottish footballer), Michael Russell (professional tennis player), Ted Russell (Canadian writer), Jane Russell (actress), Nipsey Russell (comedian) and Samuel Russell (18th century trader, and founder of Russell & Company in China).