Lou (given name)

Lou is a unisex given name. For males, it is frequently a short form (hypocorism) of Louis or Lewis, for females of Louise, etc. It may refer to:

People

Men

• Lou Adler (born 1933), American record producer, music executive, talent manager, songwriter and film director and producer
• Lou Albano (1933–2009), Italian-American professional wrestler, manager and actor
• Lou Bega (born 1975), German singer
• Lou Boudreau (1917–2001), American Hall of Fame baseball player
• Lou Brock (1939–2020), American Hall-of-Fame Major League Baseball player
• Lou Busch (1910–1979), American musician and songwriter
• Lou Costello, stage name of American actor and comedian Louis Cristillo (1906-1959)
• Lou Diamond Phillips, American actor and director born James Diamond in 1962
• Lou DiBella, American boxing promoter and television/film producer
• Lou Dobbs (born 1945), American television anchor, radio host and author
• Lou Duva, American boxing trainer and boxing promoter
• Lou Ferrigno (born 1951), American bodybuilder and actor
• Lou Ferrigno Jr. (born 1984), American actor
• Lou Frizzell (1920–1979), American actor and music director
• Lou Gehrig (1903–1941), American Hall-of-Fame Major League Baseball player
• Lou Gordon (American football) (1908–1976), American National Football League player
• Lou Gordon (journalist) (1917–1977), American radio and television commentator and newspaper reporter
• Lou Gramm, stage name of American rock singer and songwriter Louis Grammatico (b. 1950)
• Lou Groza (1924–2000), American footballer, Hall of Fame placekicker for the Cleveland Browns
• Lou Harrison (1917–2003), American composer
• Lou Hedley (born 1993), Australian American football player
• Lou Henson (1932–2020), American basketball coach
• Lou Holtz (born 1937), American former football player, coach and analyst
• Lou Jacobi (1913–2009), Canadian actor
• Lou Jacobs (1903–1992), German-American circus clown
• Lou Johnson (1934–2020), American baseball player
• Lou Johnson (pitcher) (1869–1941), American baseball pitcher
• Lou Johnson (singer) (1941–2019), American soul singer and pianist
• Lou Kenton (1908–2012), English proofreader
• Lou Kilzer (born 1951), American journalist
• Lou Kolls (1892–1941), American baseball umpire
• Lou Marini (born 1945), American saxophonist, arranger and composer
• Lou Merrill (1912–1963), American actor
• Lou Michaels (1935–2016), American football player
• Lou Pearlman (1954–2016), American record producer
• Lou Phelan (1864–1933), American baseball manager
• Lou Piniella (born 1943), American former Major League Baseball player and manager
• Lou Preager (1906–1978), British dance band leader
• Lou Rawls (1933–2006), American singer, songwriter and record producer
• Lou Reed (1942–2013), American musician, singer and songwriter
• Lou Reed (rugby union) (born 1987), Welsh rugby union footballer
• Lou Richards (1923–2017), Australian rules footballer and sports journalist
• Lou Savarese, American boxing-fighter
• Louis J. Sebille (1915–1950), American Korean War pilot posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor
• Lou Silver, American-Israeli basketball player
• Lou Sullivan (1951-1991), American author and activist known for his work on behalf of trans men
• Lou Thesz (1916–2002), American professional wrestler
• Lou Vairo (born 1945), American ice hockey coach
• Lou Viglione, former NASCAR Cup Series team owner
• Lou Vincent (born 1945), New Zealand cricket player
• Lou Williams (born 1986), American National Basketball Association player

Women

• Lou Andreas-Salomé (1861–1937), Russian-born psychoanalyst and author
• Lou Doillon (born 1982), French singer-songwriter, actress, and model
• Lou Fellingham (born 1974), English contemporary Christian singer and songwriter
• Lou Henry Hoover (1874–1944), wife of US President Herbert Hoover
• Lou Jean (born 2004), stage name Lou (French singer)
• Louise Lieberman (born 1977), American soccer coach and former player
• Lou Sanders, British comedian
• Lou Wotton (born 1983), Australian rules footballer

Non-binary people

• Lou Wall, Australian comedian

Fictional TV characters

• Lou Beale, on the BBC soap opera EastEnders
• Lou Grant, on The Mary Tyler Moore Show and Lou Grant
• Lou Solverson, on Fargo
• Lou (The Simpsons), a policeman on The Simpsons
• Lou (Ninjago), in Ninjago
• Lou, a female Flashman on Choushinsei Flashman