From a Scottish Gaelic place name, possibly meaning 'ditch' or 'muddy place'; a Highland clan name.
Brodie comes from a Scottish surname and place name, associated especially with Brodie Castle and the old Brodie estate in Moray. The place-name origin is usually explained from Gaelic, probably connected with a word for a ditch or muddy place, which is not glamorous in the abstract but very typical of old landscape names. That rough-hewn origin is part of the appeal of many Scottish surname-names: they begin in topography and family history, then acquire polish through generations of use.
As Brodie moved from surname to given name, its meaning mattered less than its sound, clan resonance, and brisk modern style. The name also carries a strong literary echo because of Muriel Spark's The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie. There the surname Brodie became associated with charisma, discipline, and a certain dangerous magnetism, giving the sound a sophistication beyond its landscape roots.
In contemporary naming, Brodie has often traveled alongside Brody, with the latter becoming more common in North America. Brodie, though, tends to feel slightly more Scottish and surname-authentic. Its perception has evolved from clan and estate name to sporty, contemporary first name, often used for boys but sometimes crossing gender lines in the modern surname-name tradition. It is a good example of how a place-based family name can become stylish without losing the faint outline of its Highland past.