DANCE
The surname Dance is of English origin and is recorded in Britain as an occupational name.
Its earliest linguistic roots can be found in the Middle English word daunce, meaning ‘to dance’, and the name was assigned to performers or organisers of social dances.
In the pre-10th century, the word dance appears in Old French as dance, derived from the Germanic term tanzer and introduced to England following the Norman Invasion of 1066; it subsequently became established as an occupational identifier for professional dancers and dance teachers.
The first documentary evidence of the surname dates to the mid-13th century; a witness named William Daunce is recorded in the Assize Court rolls of Bedfordshire for the year 1247, during the reign of King Edward the First.
A later source, the Subsidy Rolls for Yorkshire in 1301, lists a Robert de la Daunce, confirming the continued use of the surname during the early 14th century.
Church registers from the early 17th century provide further instances: the marriage of William Dance to Mawdline Adams on 2 December 1610 at St. Dunstan's, East Stepney, London; the christening of Elizabeth Dance on 15 December 1615 at St. Giles, Cripplegate, London; and other similar entries.
In the 18th and early 19th centuries the name is associated with the prominent architect and civic official George Dance (1700-1768), who served as Surveyor of London from 1735 until his death, and his son, George Dance the Younger (1734-1825), who succeeded him as Surveyor and was a professor of architecture at the Royal Academy from 1798 to 1815.
The distribution of the surname remains concentrated within the United Kingdom, reflecting its English provenance and limited migration beyond Britain.
In summary, the surname Dance has a clear occupational origin linked to the art of dancing and its participation in communal festivities, as indicated by its linguistic derivation, early documentary evidence, and notable bearers throughout English history.
Typical given names associated with the Dance surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Michael
- Paul
- Richard
- Robert
- Stephen
Female
- Christine
- Claire
- Joan
- Karen
- Linda
- Lisa
- Louise
- Margaret
- Mary
- Michelle
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Susan
Similar and related surnames
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Dance in...
Braille
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Morse
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There are approximately 4,735 people named Dance in the UK. That makes it roughly the 1,987th most common surname in Britain. Around 73 in a million people in Britain are named Dance.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Dance
- Charles Dance - Actor, screenwriter and film director
- Seb Dance - Politician
- Nathaniel Dance-Holland - Portrait painter and politician (1735 to 1811)
- Trevor Dance - Football player
- Stanley Dance - Music critic (1910 to 1999)
Names and descriptions courtesy of Wikipedia, and may contain errors. This is not intended to be an exhaustive list of every famous person with this name.