Daniel
A common surname taken from the biblical given name Daniel, meaning “God is my judge.”
The #396 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 3,834 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Daniel comes from the medieval personal name Daniel, ultimately from Hebrew Daniyyel, meaning “God is my judge.” As a surname, it began as a patronymic or inherited family name taken from a father’s given name. Related short forms and derivative surnames include Dann and Daniels.
History
The surname is widespread in England and other English-speaking countries because the given name Daniel was long popular in Christian communities. Lower explicitly notes it as a very common surname and the parent of Daniels and Dann. It also appears in records of English families and in forms influenced by French and Anglo-Norman usage.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because Daniel was so common as a baptismal name, it generated several surname forms rather than just one fixed spelling.
From the historical record
“ville. DANIEL. The baptismal name, very common as a surname, and the parent of Daniels, Dann, &c. DANIELS. See Daniel. DANN. See Daniel. DANSAYS. French Protestant refugees who settled at Rye, co. Sussex, in 1685, im- mediately after the Revocation of the Edict of Nantes. HoUoway's Rye, 582.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom