Hilburn
A surname most likely from a place name meaning “hill stream” or from a hill-side locality.
The #7,568 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 70,329 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hilburn is most likely an English locational surname built from Old English elements meaning “hill” and “stream/brook.” In that reading, the name originally identified someone who lived by or came from a hillside stream or a similarly named settlement. The modern spelling may also reflect later sound changes and spelling variation around older forms such as Hillborne/Hillburn.
History
As with many English place-based surnames, the name would have become hereditary after families began using a location to distinguish one person from another. In North America, Hilburn is relatively uncommon and is found mainly in English-speaking populations, especially in the United States. The spelling has likely been stabilized in more recent centuries from a wider range of earlier variants.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because the second element may come from an old word for a stream, the name can be read quite literally as a “hill stream” surname.