SPILLER
The surname Spiller is fundamentally English in origin and has long been recognised as an occupational surname within the British Isles.
In the Middle English period the term spille was used to describe the act of spilling or scattering, and it is believed that individuals who worked with grain – millers or operators of corn mills – were originally identified by this word.
An alternative line of etymology links the name to the Olde English verb spilian, meaning to play, jest or tumble, which later evolved into the Middle English spill(en). In this sense Spiller would denote a jester, juggler or tumbrer who travelled with medieval fairs or was attached to a noble’s retinue.
Another possible derivation comes from the Olde English spillan, meaning to spoil, waste or squander; a person described as a “spiller” in the 16th century would therefore have been considered wasteful or spendthrift.
Early clerical evidence of the surname appears in Church registers from the 16th century, such as the marriage recorded on 22 January 1540 between William Spiller and Chrystian Harys at Colyton, Devonshire, and the christening of Anne, daughter of Hary Spiller, on 21 April 1596 at St. Andrew’s, Holborn, London.
A family bearing the name Spiller was granted a coat of arms described heraldically as per pale sable and argent a horse courant counterchanged. The crest associated with the same grant depicts a silver eagle, wings of gold, standing on a green snake nowed.
The earliest surviving spelling of the family name is that of Robert Speller, who is noted in the Assize Court Rolls of Lancashire in 1202, during the reign of King John (1199‑1216).
In contemporary times the surname is most commonly found in the United Kingdom and the United States. According to the 2018 UK Census the estimated number of individuals named Spiller in England is approximately 1 743, with the principal concentrations in Northamptonshire and Lancashire. In the United States the 2019 Census estimates a population of 8 247, largely dispersed but with notable communities in Texas and New York.
The name has produced a wide range of orthographic variants over the centuries, including Spieller, Spieler, Spyller, Spiellar, Spayller, Speiler, Speille, Speelle, Spylor, Spyyle. Internationally, French bearers render it as Espilleur, Speilleur, Spilleur, while in German-speaking realms it appears as Speller and in Dutch forms as Spillaar. In Scandinavian contexts the surname has evolved into Shell, Sheild, Shield.
Typical given names associated with the Spiller surname
Male
- Andrew
- Anthony
- Christopher
- Daniel
- David
- Jason
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Richard
Female
- Carol
- Christina
- Emma
- Helen
- Janet
- Jennifer
- Karen
- Linda
- Margaret
- Mary
- Michelle
- Nicola
- 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 Spiller in...
Braille
⠎⠏⠊⠇⠇⠑⠗
Morse
....--....-...-....-.
Semaphore
There are approximately 2,743 people named Spiller in the UK. That makes it roughly the 3,255th most common surname in Britain. Around 42 in a million people in Britain are named Spiller.
Surname type: Occupational name
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Spiller
- Danny Spiller - Football player
- Frederick Spiller - Boxer (1884 to 1953)
- Mary Spiller - (1923 to 2019)
- Cecil Spiller - Welsh cricketer (1900 to 1974)
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.