Courtney
An old surname that usually comes from a place name, most famously the Norman family of Courtenay in France.
The #1,294 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 11,349 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Courtney is generally taken from the Norman French place-name Courtenay, in the Île-de-France. As a surname, it originally meant someone who came from that place. The place-name itself is usually explained from a Gallo-Roman personal name plus the locational ending -acum, though the exact older form is not always spelled out consistently in older surname books.
History
The name was brought to England after the Norman Conquest and became established in medieval records, especially in Devon, where the great Courtenay family became prominent. The surname later spread beyond the aristocratic line and is now common as an ordinary family name. In Irish surname studies, Courtney can also appear as an Anglicized form or match for some Gaelic names, so not every bearer shares the same origin.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The Courtenays of Devon were one of the major noble families of medieval England, which helped keep the surname visible in historical records for centuries.
From the historical record
“Appleford.— Local, ' of Apple- ford.' A chapeliy in the parish of Sulton Courtney, co. Beris. LaciadeApc1fbrde,ca Comb.-uTj. A, WiUimm de Appelfacd.co. Surf, iUd.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instancesNotable people named Courtney
- Jai Courtney (b. 1986)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.