SAXON
Saxon is a surname of English and Germanic origin. It is derived from the Old English word Seaxe, which referred to the Saxons, a Germanic tribe that migrated to England during the early medieval period. The word is also linked to the term for a short sword or dagger, indicating a warrior or a person of great strength.
Historically, the name was used as an ethnic or regional identifier for a person from the region of Saxony in Germany. As a surname, it typically denotes a connection to Saxon ancestry or to the descendants of the Saxon people who settled in England after the 5th and 6th centuries.
The surname also has a locational origin. Several villages in the British Isles were named Saxton – in Yorkshire, Cambridge and Surrey – the place name meaning “the settlement (tun) of the Saxons”. The surname Saxon therefore can have arisen from the inhabitants of any such settlement. The earliest recorded appearance in this context is Johannes de Saxton in the 1379 Poll Tax rolls for the city of York.
A second possible origin is occupational. In some families the surname derives from the Middle English sexteyn, itself a derivative of the Old French secrestein, introduced after the Norman conquest. This denotes a sexton or church warden. An early example is William Sextain listed in the 1327 Subsidy Rolls for Sussex. The spelling of the surname as Sexton is found mainly in Limerick city, where several bearers were mayors, some of English Protestant origin.
A third origin relates to the Gaelic Irish O'Seastnain, meaning the descendant of Seastnan. The personal name Seastnan comes from seasuighim, “to defend”, so the surname may also reflect a bodyguard or protective role. The first recorded use of this form is Tomas Sekerstein in the 1203 Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire during the reign of King John.
The surname Saxon is among the more common ones in England. According to a study of 2002, Saxon ranked as the 517th most common surname in England. In the United States, a 1990 study reported the name as the 545th most common surname, with notable concentrations in the south‑east, particularly Texas, Arkansas, Oklahoma, North Carolina, Louisiana, Georgia and Alabama. The name also appears throughout former British colonies and other English‑speaking regions.
Variations of the name have emerged over time, reflecting spelling differences and dialectal influences. Common variants include Saxton, Sexton, Sextone, Sexen, Saxen and Saxan. These spellings are all derived from the same original form and often indicate geographical or family lineage. The surname has also been found in Germany, Scandinavia, Poland and Russia in adapted spellings such as Saxsen or Saxsin, and in France as Saxton.
In modern usage, the surname Saxon often carries connotations of strength, resilience and heritage. While some families can trace their lineage to ancient noble and Anglo‑Saxon lines, many Saxon families have a fairly recent English‑speaking ancestry, first appearing in historical records during the 18th or 19th centuries.
Typical given names associated with the Saxon surname
Male
- Andrew
- Christopher
- David
- James
- John
- Mark
- Martin
- Michael
- Neil
- Paul
- Peter
- Robert
Female
- Amanda
- Clare
- Dawn
- Elizabeth
- Judith
- Lisa
- Margaret
- Mary
- Michelle
- Patricia
- Sharon
- Sheila
- 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 Saxon in...
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There are approximately 2,099 people named Saxon in the UK. That makes it roughly the 4,044th most common surname in Britain. Around 32 in a million people in Britain are named Saxon.
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 Saxon
- James Saxon - Actor (1955 to 2003)
- James Saxon - Painter (1772 to 1)
- Henry Saxon - Painter (1918 to 2005)
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.