Blais
A French surname tied to the saint’s name Blaise, ultimately from a Latin nickname meaning “lisping” or “stammering.”
The #6,017 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 53,995 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Blais is a French surname related to the personal name Blaise. Historical sources show the name written in French as both Blaise and Blais, with Latin forms such as Blasius and Blavius. The deeper root is usually linked to the Roman nickname Blaesus, meaning someone who lisps or speaks with a stammer.
History
The surname appears in French-speaking areas and was carried into Scotland by a French refugee family in the Huguenot period, according to one historical note. In France and neighboring regions, the saint’s name helped keep the form in use as both a given name and surname. English-language sources of the 19th century often treated Blais as a variant spelling of Blaise.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One 19th-century source notes that in Germany the related form appears as Blaes, showing how the same saint’s name shifted spelling across Europe.
From the historical record
“L\»LT, li suriuiine originally Frencli, introduced into Scot- land bv Blais-CouU, wlio ilcd fn>ni Kranoe during the perse- cution of th; Huguenots, and repairing to St. Andrews, bi'came a professor in the college there. He was the ancestor of the Colts of Auldhauie in Haddingtonshire, and Gartsher- rie in…”
— The Scottish Nation; or, the surnames, families ... of the people of Scotland, vol. 1