STREETS
Streets is a surname of English provenance which is principally derived from the Old English element stræt, meaning a paved road or thoroughfare. The word stræt in turn descends from the Latin strata, describing a road constructed of paving stones.
The earliest use of the surname is recorded in the year 1130, where an individual named Modbert de Strete appears in a list of Old English names. Subsequent references include Roger Stret in the Pipe Rolls of Norfolk in 1199, William de la Stret of Devon in 1228, and John Streter in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex in 1332, all during the reign of King Edward III.
In the Middle Ages a surname based on a place name could denote either a locational or a topographical connection. Streets may therefore refer to a person who either lived near a Roman or paved road, or who resided close to one of the several villages named Street in Somerset, Hereford or Kent. All of these settlements were situated on notable Roman roads, which explains the persistent association of the name with such thoroughfares.
Over the centuries the surname has been recorded with several orthographic variants, including Streat, Strete, Street, Streeten, and Streeter. The dropping of the terminal e during the Middle English period produced the modern spelling Streets; other forms such as Streeten are predominantly found in Yorkshire.
In England the name is most commonly situated in the north of the country, particularly West Yorkshire, Lancashire and Greater Manchester. Alternative spellings such as Strett tend to be encountered in the West Country and in Irish dialects, whereas Strete and Streete appear more frequently in the Midlands and the north.
American, Australian, Canadian and New Zealand registries contain the surname, a distribution pattern that aligns with patterns of emigration from England during the nineteenth and twentieth centuries. The relatively small number of individuals bearing the name in these countries reflects its general uncommon status.
Despite the various spellings and geographic dispersal, the surname has never attained widespread commonality. The contemporary frequency of Streets remains comparatively low, though the name continues to be represented among a number of established families in England and abroad.
Typical given names associated with the Streets surname
Male
- Alan
- Andrew
- David
- Gary
- James
- John
- Matthew
- Michael
- Paul
- Philip
- Robert
- Sean
Female
- Amanda
- Barbara
- Beverley
- Claire
- Dorothy
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Hayley
- Julia
- Margaret
- Mary
- Nicola
- Shirley
- Susan
- Suzanne
Similar and related surnames
- Starts
- Storts
- Strait
- Straits
- Strat
- Strata
- Strate
- Strates
- Strath
- Strati
- Stratis
- Stratos
- Stratt
- Stratu
- Stratz
- Streat
- Streater
- Streats
- Strede
- Streed
- Streeks
- Streels
- Street
- Streete
- Streeten
- Streeter
- Streeth
- Streether
- Streetin
- Streeting
- Streetion
- Streetley
- Streetly
- Streetman
- Streeton
- Streett
- Streight
- Streit
- Streiter
- Strelets
- Streten
- Streter
- Streton
- Strett
- Strettell
- Stretten
- Stretter
- Stretton
- Strieter
Related and similar names are generated algorithmically based on the spelling, and may not necessarily share an etymology.
How to communicate the surname Streets in...
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There are approximately 862 people named Streets in the UK. That makes it roughly the 8,296th most common surname in Britain. Around 13 in a million people in Britain are named Streets.
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Streets
- William Streets - Cricketer
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.