Garner
A surname with two main roots: either an occupational name for a granary keeper, or a variant of the medieval given name Garner/Warin.
The #442 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,154 Americans shares it.
Etymology
In one well-attested English sense, Garner comes from Middle English gar(o)ner, a word for a granary or storehouse, so the surname could mean someone who lived by or worked at a grain store. Some early surname dictionaries also treat Garner as a spelling variant or outcome of a Germanic personal name such as Garner/Warin, rather than a direct occupational name. The surname therefore has more than one possible historical source, and different families may not share the same origin.
History
The name is recorded in medieval England, including an example in Yorkshire in the late 14th century. Later spelling variation was common, so Garner could be fixed from several related forms in different regions. In modern English it is established both in Britain and in the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The word behind the occupational sense is the same family as the English noun 'garner,' meaning a granary or storehouse.
From the historical record
“vocation of the Edict of Nantes. GARNER. 1. A granary or storehouse. From residence at one. 2, A small river tributary to the Wye. GARNET. GARNETT. Said to be a corruption of Gernet. GARNIIAjNI. a contraction of Garden- ham, " The garden homestead." GARRARD. GARRAD. Gerard,”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom