ENGLISH
English is a surname that originates from the British Isles and is primarily found in England. It is associated with the English language, Christian faith, and the wider culture of the United Kingdom.
The name derives from the Old English word Englisc, meaning “of the English people”. In the early Middle Ages it was employed as an ethnic or regional identifier to distinguish a person of English descent or nationality from those of other Germanic peoples.
During the 5th and 6th centuries, the Angles and Saxons – West Germanic tribes – invaded England. An individual who was an Angle was sometimes marked with the epithet English to set him apart from a Saxon. In areas where English culture interacted with other languages—such as Wales, Scotland and the Danelaw—the surname was used for an Englishman within a predominantly non‑English community. In the Scottish border region the spelling Inglis appeared to denote an Englishman in contrast to a borderer, while the spelling English was recorded for an Englishperson living in Strathclyde.
By the post‑1066 period, the surname was commonly applied as a distinguishing epithet for a non‑Norman living in regions of intense Norman settlement. Over time, it developed into a hereditary family name that has been transmitted through successive generations. The surname today appears in several variants, including Inglish, Inglis and English, and it is evenly distributed across the country.
The earliest recorded spelling that corresponds to the family name is Gillebertus Anglicus, dated 1171 in the Pipe Rolls of Herefordshire during the reign of King Henry XI (1154–1189), when he was recorded in a tax survey. Later examples include a 1560 marriage at St. Mary Magdalene, Bermondsey, London, in which a Friswide English married Thomas Sheppard, and in 1567 the christening of William, son of Alexander English, at the same church.
In contemporary usage, the surname English is a common and unremarkable family name found across the United Kingdom and beyond, carried by individuals who can trace their lineage or cultural heritage to England.
Typical given names associated with the English surname
Male
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Robert
- Stephen
- William
Female
- Christine
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Helen
- Jennifer
- Julie
- Karen
- Linda
- Margaret
- Mary
- 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 English in...
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There are approximately 11,985 people named English in the UK. That makes it the 760th most common surname in Britain. Around 184 in a million people in Britain are named English.
Surname type: Location or geographical feature
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named English
- Arthur English - Actor (1919 to 1995)
- Jon English - -born Australian singer, songwriter, musician and actor (1949 to 2016)
- John English - 1903–1969; British-born American film editor and film director (1903 to 1969)
- Sam English - Northern Irish football player (1908 to 1967)
- Michael English - Artist (1941 to 2009)
- Jack English - Photographer
- Katreeya English - Thai singer and actor
- Michael English - Politician (1930 to 2019)
- Matty English - Rugby league player
- Tony English - Football player
- Tommy English - Football player
- Gerald English - Opera singer (1925 to 2019)
- William John English - Recipient of the Victoria Cross (1882 to 1941)
- Ernest English - Cricketer (1874 to 1941)
- Jack English - Football player (1930 to 1)
- Graeme English -
- Nick English - Rower
- Isaac English - Scottish football player
- David English - Journalist (1931 to 1998)
- Felix English - Track cyclist
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.