Dewey
Usually an English patronymic surname meaning “son of Dewin,” though in some cases it may reflect the Welsh name Dewi (David).
The #2,926 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 25,206 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The English surname Dewey is commonly explained as a patronymic from the personal name Dewin, with Bardsley treating it as “the son of Dewin.” The name has been linked to a Domesday-era form Derewin, showing that it belongs to an old set of Germanic personal names. Another explanation, given by Arthur, connects Dewey with Welsh Dewi, a form or diminutive of David; this may account for some bearers, especially in Welsh or Welsh-influenced contexts.
History
The surname appears in medieval English records in several spellings, including Dewey and Dewy. By the early modern period it was established in England and later carried to North America. Because the name can be explained in more than one way, some families may have independent origins rather than a single shared source.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
One 19th-century source also linked Dewey to the Welsh name Dewi, which is itself a form of David.
From the historical record
“Fuller's Worlliies iii. 195. DEWEY. Walter de Dounai was a sreat DIG 89 baron and lord of Bampton and Were, under William the Coniiucror. In Domesd. he occurs as a tenant in capite in the coun-”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom