Clover is the name of a genus of wildflower, usually with three leaves but occasionally it has four leaves, which is considered lucky. The word comes from Old English cāfre via Proto-Germanic *klaibrǭ (clover), which is of uncertain origin though perhaps deriving from Proto-Germanic *klaiwaz, itself derived from PIE root word *gleh₁y- (to smear; to stick, glue). Clover is also…
Tag: Occupational surname
Hollister
Hollister comes from an English surname, an occupational name for a brothel-keeper. It comes from Old French holier/hollier, a variant of horier meaning “pimp”, from an agent noun of hore, hure (whore) which derives from a PIE root word. Hollister could also have originated as a locational surname for someone who lived near a holly tree or a holly…
Cain
Cain is the name of the firstborn son of Adam and Eve, who killed his brother Abel. It seems to be derived from Hebrew qanah meaning “acquired, acquisition” or perhaps related to a root word meaning “to create”; it could also be from qayin meaning “spear” or “smith” Cain is also a Welsh word and female name meaning “lovely,…
Gold
Gold is the name of a precious metal with the symbol Au for gold, as well as referring to a bright yellow color. It comes from Proto-Germanic *gulþą (gold) which derives from a PIE root word. Gold is also an English and Jewish surname which could have originated as an occupational name for someone who worked with…
Macon
Macon is an anglicized spelling of Maçon, a French surname meaning “mason“, likely an occupational name for a stonemason. It may also be derived from a habitational name, from the French city of Mâcon, which may be an oblique form of Germanic personal name Mako, via Mago, a short form of a compound name from Old High German maht meaning “strength,…
Chantry
Chantry comes from an English surname via Old French chanterie which comes from French chanter meaning “to sing”. It comes from Latin cantare which ultimately derives from a PIE root word. It originated as an endowment of a priest to sing daily mass for the souls of specific people. It may also have originated as a nickname for the…
Cooper
Cooper comes from an English surname, an occupational name for someone who made or repaired barrels, tubs, buckets, casks, etc. It’s made from English coop via Old English cȳpe (basket, cask), a cognate of Middle Dutch and German kuper (cooper) which may be derived from Latin cupa (tub, cask, vat) via a PIE root word. Nicknames: Coop Origin: Proto-Indo-European…
Walker
Walker comes from an English surname, an occupational name for a fuller, someone who thickened and scoured raw cloth by beating and trampling it in water. It comes from Old English wealcere (one who fulls cloth), a derivative of wealcan (to walk, to move around) which ultimately derives from a PIE root word. Origin: Proto-Indo-European
Mercer
Mercer comes from an English and Scottish surname, an occupational name for someone who was a merchant. it comes from Anglo-Norman mercer (merchant, trader) which comes from Latin merx (merchandise, commodity; goods) which could be derived from Proto-Italic *merk- via a Etruscan source referring to various aspects of economics; or it could be derived from PIE *merĝ- (boundary, border). Origin: Etruscan, Proto-Indo-European…
Rotaru
Rotaru comes from a Romanian surname, an occupational name meaning “wheelwright” or “wheel maker”, referring to someone who built or repaired wooden wheels. It derives from the Romanian word roată meaning “wheel” via Latin rota (wheel) deriving from a PIE root word. As far as I can tell, Rotaru has never been used as a given name….
