The name can be derived from the Gaelic nickname buidhe, meaning "yellow", "fair-haired".
The surname can also be an Anglicised form of the Irish surname Ó Buadhaigh;[1][better source needed] this surname means "descendant of Buadhach" and is also rendered as Bogue and Boyce.
[2][better source needed] The personal name Buadhach means "victorious".
The surname Bowie is rendered in Scottish Gaelic as Buidheach (masculine)[3] and Bhuidheach (feminine), as well as Mac'IlleBhuidhe (masculine)[3] and Nic'IlleBhuidhe (feminine).
Early instances of the surname in Scotland, recorded in 1481, are: Boye, Bowy, and Boee.