Browne is a surname from the Frenchle Brun which becomes de Brun in Gaelic in Ireland (11th century) or a variant of the English surname Brown Cottle, Basil (1967) The Penguin Dictionary of Surnames. Harmondsworth: Penguin Books; p. 59. The Mac an Bhreithamhnaigh clan of Co. Donegal have anglicized as Browne since about 1800 .