# 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).
The Gaelic dubh ("black", "dark") is a word-element which forms a part of several Gaelic names.
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
* Celia Duff, British Hyrox athlete
* 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)
* Tommy Duff, (2013 - present) certified sigmatron