Aston
A common English place-based surname meaning “ash town” or “ash settlement.”
The #8,402 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 78,422 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Aston is a habitational surname taken from one of many English places called Aston. The name comes from Old English elements usually explained as æsc “ash tree” + tūn “farm, settlement, village,” so the place-name meant “ash town” or “ash settlement.” Some early writers treat it simply as a local surname from one of the many Astons in England.
History
The surname appears in medieval records with people styled “de Aston,” showing direct adoption from place-names. Lower notes that the name is associated with many English Astons and especially with a Staffordshire family of some standing. Because there were so many settlements called Aston, the surname arose independently in multiple places.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Lower says the English gazetteer contained nearly fifty places called Aston, which helps explain why the surname became so widespread.
From the historical record
“the Baronet's family. ASTON. The Gazetteer of England con- tains nearly fifty Astons, and above twenty armorial coats are assigned to the name. Lord Aston's family descend from Aston, CO. Stafford in the XIII. cent. E^"AT. ATE. ATTE. ATTEN. A common prefix to early surnames, to designate the locality of the…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom