THOMASSON
The surname Thomasson is a patronymic name, literally meaning son of Thomas. The personal name Thomas is of Aramaic origin, derived from the by‑name “Toma” which translates as twin. In medieval English practice the suffix -son was appended to the father's given name to form the child's family name, thereby producing the form Thomasson.
Records of the name in the British Isles date back to the early fourteenth century. The first documented spelling appears on a 1327 Subsidy Roll of Derbyshire as Adam Thomassone, a man who served under King Edward the First. The use of the name remained uncommon in England until after the twelfth‑century Crusades when returning knights began to adopt Hebrew or biblical by‑names for their offspring. It was during this period that the form Thomasson gained popularity within Christian society, particularly among clerical families and those who had served abroad.
In Scotland and the wider British Isles the surname was recorded in parish registers such as the christening of Ann Thomason in Stepney, London, on 28 April 1729. The name was also associated with notable figures; James Thomason, a lieutenant governor in the Bengal civil service, served as a registrar and judge in 1830 and was appointed governor of Madras on the day of his death.
Across the North Sea the same patronymic pattern developed independently in Scandinavia. In Sweden and Norway the tradition of forming surnames by attaching the suffix -son to a father's first name was widespread during the late Middle Ages. Consequently the form Thomasson appeared in the eastern Norwegian county of Østerdalen and in Trøndelag, where it remains one of the most common family names today. Variants such as Thomassen also occur in the same regions.
In the United Kingdom today the name is predominantly found in the south‑east, particularly in Kent and Surrey. In the United States it is mainly situated along the Atlantic seaboard, from Maine to Florida, a settlement pattern that can be traced back to the migration of a group of bearers in Pennsylvania in 1786 during the large influx of European settlers.
Variant spellings of the surname have arisen over the centuries, influenced by regional accents, spelling conventions and personal preference. Common alternatives include Thomason, Thamason, Thomsen and Thomassen. Additional forms such as Tomasonn and Thamasson are also recorded, often appearing in historical documents where family members adjusted the spelling to suit local orthography.
Contemporary holders of the surname may retain the traditional spelling or choose a variant that better reflects their own identity. Despite variations, all derive from the same patronymic root and share the meaning son of Thomas, a name that traces its linguistic heritage back to the Aramaic word for twin.
Typical given names associated with the Thomasson surname
Male
- Alan
- David
- Ian
- James
- John
- Mark
- Michael
- Paul
- Peter
- Richard
Female
- Anne
- Christine
- Elizabeth
- Emma
- Jacqueline
- Jane
- Jean
- Kathleen
- Lisa
- Louise
- Patricia
- Sarah
- Valerie
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 Thomasson in...
Braille
⠞⠓⠕⠍⠁⠎⠎⠕⠝
Morse
-....-----.-......----.
Semaphore
There are approximately 1,088 people named Thomasson in the UK. That makes it roughly the 6,918th most common surname in Britain. Around 17 in a million people in Britain are named Thomasson.
Surname type: From name of parent
Origin: English
Region of origin: British Isles
Country of origin: England
Religion of origin: Christian
Language of origin: English
Famous people named Thomasson
- Franklin Thomasson - Politician (1873 to 1941)
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.