Holmes
A surname that usually began as a place name, referring to someone who lived by a holm or low-lying piece of land near water.
The #171 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 1,969 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Holmes is generally from the Middle English word holm, meaning a low-lying piece of ground, especially land near water, or a small island. The same word also appears in Old Norse holmr, “islet” or “small island,” which likely reinforced the surname in the north of England. In surname form, Holmes often developed as a local or topographical name for someone who lived at or near such a place.
History
Historical surname writers treat Holmes as a common English local name, and note forms like Atte Holmes, showing an origin in a place or landscape feature rather than a personal name. It is especially associated in older references with northern and midland counties, though it became widespread across Britain and later the English-speaking world. The surname also survives in related forms such as Holm and Holms.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older writers sometimes glossed a holm as land “good for nothing but grass,” a vivid reminder that the name is tied to low, damp ground.
From the historical record
“ground. See termination ER. HOLMES. A holme is defined by Hal- liwell as ' flat laud ; a small island ; a de- posit of soil at the confluence of two waters. Flat gi'ounds near water are called holms.' " Some call theiu the holmes, because they lie low, and are good for nothing but grasse." Harrison. In Scotland a…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom