Eady
A surname usually from a pet form of a baptismal name, especially Edie/Eddie, rather than from a place or occupation.
The #8,299 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 77,341 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is generally explained as coming from a short form of a given name such as Edie, Eddie, or Eddy. In older surname scholarship, it is often connected with feminine or nickname forms of names beginning with Ed-, and Lower notes that Edie could also be a Scots pet name linked with Adam. The name therefore means, in effect, 'descendant of Edie/Eddie,' though the exact first name behind any one family line may vary.
History
Bardsley and Lower both treat Eady as part of a larger cluster of surnames built from the same pet forms, including Eade, Eadie, Eddie, and Eddy. The name appears in English records and is also found in Scotland, where related forms were used as familiar names. In modern usage it remains fairly uncommon but established in Britain and the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Nineteenth-century surname writers remarked that this small pet name family left a surprisingly large footprint in English directories.
From the historical record
“Eoddy, Eady, Badla.— Bapt. ' the son of Kde,' from the pet Edie or Eddie. For fuller statement and many instances, v. Eddie.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances