David
A surname taken from the biblical given name David, meaning “beloved.”
The #782 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 7,011 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname David comes from the biblical personal name David, from Hebrew dāwīd, meaning “beloved.” In surname use, it is usually a patronymic surname, given to someone identified as the son or descendant of a man named David. In Welsh and Scottish usage, the given name was especially influential, which helped generate related surnames such as Davies, Davis, Davidson, and others.
History
Historical surname writers note that the Christian name David was well established in Wales and later spread widely in England after the Norman period. As a surname, David appears in several forms across Britain, especially in Welsh, English, and Scottish records. The name also has a long Jewish history as a hereditary surname derived from the biblical personal name.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same root gave rise to a whole family of surnames, including Davis, Davies, Davidson, and Dawkins.
From the historical record
“DAW DAVID. Though of ancient standing in Wales, this Christian name scarcely ap- pears in England before the Conquest. Modified in various forms it has since pro- duced many family names, some of which are among the commonest in use, as Da- vids, Davidson, Davidge — Davey, Davy, Davie — Davies, Davis, Daviss…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom