Bakker
A Dutch occupational surname meaning “baker,” from the man who baked bread.
The #9,583 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 91,022 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Bakker is the Dutch word for a baker, ultimately from the same Germanic root that produced English "baker." The name was first used for someone whose work was baking bread or other baked goods. In older scholarship it is also linked with related North Sea Germanic forms, all pointing to the same straightforward occupational meaning.
History
The surname is especially common in the Netherlands and in Dutch-speaking or Dutch-descended families. Historical surname studies note that forms without an article, such as Bakker, are typical in northern Dutch areas, while article forms like De Bakker are also found elsewhere. Because the word is such a transparent job title, it arose independently in more than one Germanic-speaking region.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname is one of the clearest examples of a job-name surname: it is essentially the word for the occupation itself turned into a family name.
From the historical record
“Norwich, 1622. It may be from Dch. Bakker ; a p.n. ; A.S. bcecere (a baker). Le Baker in Rot. Hund., vols. i. ii. Bakewell. A loc. n., Derbysh. Balchin. D. Balchen ; FI. Bal- caen ; N. Balki (a beam) ; D.B.”
— British Family Names: their origin and meaning (2nd ed.)