My Last name is LaWall, with the accent on the second syllable. Many years ago it was French "LaValle" meaning "from the valley". My ancestors were Huguenots (French Protestants) at a time when being a Protestant in Catholic France could have unpleasant consequences like prison sentences and beheadings. So, they packed up and moved to Germany. They changed the spelling to "Lawall" to accommodate the difference between French and German pronunciations of the letter "v". They also dropped the final "e" which was silent in French but would be pronounced in German.

But, when my formerly French/now German ancestors moved to Pennsylvania in the US, they didn't change the "w" back to a "v" so that Americans would pronounce it correctly and it wound up with the English "w" sound. Many of my relatives (and it's such an uncommon name that I assume anyone with the name is at least a distant cousin) have chosen to capitalize the "W" as a pronunciation aid.

Coincidentally, the city of Jacksonville, Florida, where I grew up, was originally established by another French Huguenot, the explorer Jean Ribault. In fact, the school I attended was named after him. And, in the historical district of the city of Pensacola, Florida there is a "LaValle House", built in the 19th century and maintained as a historical building by the city.

Bruce