Harbour
A surname for someone connected with a harbour or a place of shelter and refuge.
The #7,964 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 74,307 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname most likely comes from Middle English harbou(r), meaning a shelter, refuge, or lodging place, especially for ships or travelers. The word ultimately goes back to Old English and Old French forms connected with housing and protection, rather than only the modern sea-port sense. In surname use, it would have been applied to someone who lived by, worked at, or provided a harbour or lodging place.
History
The early evidence in surname dictionaries treats Harbour as a variant of Harber/Harbourer-type names, referring to someone who shelters or provides lodging. Records such as Alice le Barbour and Richard le Barbour in the 13th and 14th centuries show the form in medieval England. The spelling Harbour is less common than Harbor in American usage, but both survive as surnames.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Old surname dictionaries sometimes explain Harbour alongside Harbinger, because both were linked to the idea of providing shelter or lodging.
From the historical record
“thumberland. HARBOUR. Any place of refuge, whether for ships, travellers, beasts of the chase, &c. HARBUD. See Harbard. HARBY. Places in cos. Leicester and Nottingham. HARCOURT. A town and ancient”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Harbour
- David Harbour (b. 1975)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.