SPEAR

Spear is a surname of English origin, deriving from the pre‑7th‑century Old English word spere, which denotes a spear or lance. It is generally regarded as a metonymic occupational name for a maker or user of spears, or, alternatively, as a nickname for a person who was tall, thin or fierce in manner, thereby resembling a spear.

The earliest documented spelling of the surname is that of Walter Speare, dated 1185 in the pipe rolls of Somerset during the reign of King Henry II of England. Subsequent medieval records include Henry Spere of Lancashire in 1246, Conrad Sperr of Offenburg in Germany in 1359, and Robertus Spyer on the 1379 Yorkshire poll‑tax rolls. Later examples are Annes Spere, christened at St. Giles church, Cripplegate, London, on 1 March 1591; Hester Sperry (originally christened Sparry), who married Thomas Davis at St James church, Duke Street, London, on 14 July 1696; and Edward Spary, a witness at St Pancras Old Church, London, on 24 December 1786.

In addition to its occupational usage, the surname may have had a topographic element: it could refer to a person dwelling near a brushwood fence, which in medieval England was also termed a spere. Some records interpret the plural forms such as Spears and Speares as a patronymic indicating “son of Spere”, or as deriving from the French verb espier, meaning to watch or observe, again suggesting a watchman who might have carried a spear.

The name has produced a wide array of spelling variants, including Spear, Sperr, Spere, Spary, Sperry, Spier, Spearman, Speare, Speres, and Speeres. These variants appear in both the United Kingdom and Germany. In Scandinavia the Germanic form Speer is found, and the Dutch variant Speijer occurs, suggesting a pre‑migration transmission of the root word across the North Atlantic.

Today the surname Spear is present in many countries. In the United Kingdom it remains common throughout the British Isles. The United States records over 15,000 individuals with the name, most frequently in Colorado, Pennsylvania, Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi. In Canada it is common in Manitoba and Ontario; in Australia it is found in Victoria, New South Wales and South Australia. European occurrences include France, Spain, Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Belgium and Slovakia. The surname is also common in South Africa and in parts of South America such as Peru, Colombia and Argentina. In Asia it appears mainly in India, Malaya and Singapore.

While the original occupational or descriptive significance of Spear has largely faded into history, the surviving records indicate a name that was associated with the craft or use of a spear, with possible connotations of strength, height and vigilance. The surname’s endurance across centuries and continents stands as a testament to the varied paths taken by those who carried it.

Typical given names associated with the Spear surname

Male

• David
• James
• John
• Kevin
• Mark
• Michael
• Paul
• Peter
• Richard
• Stephen
• William

Female

• Elizabeth
• Helen
• Helene
• Julie
• Laura
• Margaret
• Mary
• Nicola
• Rebecca
• Sarah
• Susan
• Yvonne

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 Spear in...

Braille

⠎⠏⠑⠁⠗

Morse

....--...-.-.

Semaphore

Origin: English

Region of origin: British Isles

Country of origin: England

Religion of origin: Christian

Language of origin: English

Famous people named Spear

• Roger Ruskin Spear - Musician
• Ruskin Spear - Artist (1911 to 1990)
• Bernard Spear - Actor (1919 to 2003)
• Mary Spear - Cricketer (1913 to 2006)

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.

Your comments on the Spear surname