Brooke
A surname originally used for someone who lived by a brook or stream.
The #6,717 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 61,417 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Brooke comes from the Old English word for a brook or small stream, usually written as broc or a closely related form in medieval records. It began as a topographic byname for someone who lived near a stream, and in some cases may also reflect residence at a place called Brooke. The spelling with final -e is a traditional English surname form; related medieval spellings include Atte-Broc and Attenbroke.
History
Historical sources show Brooke used both as a simple topographic surname and as a locational name from places called Brooke, especially in England. Lower notes early medieval forms and later surname variants such as Brooks and Brookes, while Bardsley points to local origins such as Braybrooke in Northamptonshire in related forms. The name was established among English gentry by the Middle Ages, with one branch traced to William de la Brooke in the 13th century.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname Brooke could arise either from living by a stream or from a place name, so two families with the same surname were not always related.
From the historical record
“BROOKBANK. See Brooksbank. BROOKE.* Adam, Lord of Leighton, CO. Chester, is the first recorded ancestor of the Baronet Brookes of Norton. He lived in the reign of Henry III. The elder line failed about 1G32. The Brookes of UfFord, co. Suffolk, des- cended from AVilliam de la Brooke, owner of the manor of Brooke…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom