Kiss
An English surname often explained as a shortened or altered form of names ending in -kins, rather than from the word “kiss.”
The #8,305 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 77,380 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Kiss is generally treated in English surname books as a reduced or altered form of longer names ending in -kins, especially forms like Hod(k)ins or Popkins. In this view, the -kiss ending reflects a phonetic change from -kins, not a direct connection with the common English word kiss. The name is therefore best understood as a nickname-like or patronymic surname that evolved through informal speech and spelling change.
History
Bardsley and related early surname writers group Kiss with other English forms such as Hodgkiss, Popkiss, and Purkiss, all of which they explain as altered -kins names. The surname is uncommon in modern records, but the same pattern is seen in a range of English surnames that lost or softened consonants over time. Because the sources here mention Kiss only incidentally, the exact family-by-family origin may vary.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Early surname scholars used Kiss as a handy example of how a family name can be misleadingly close to an ordinary English word while actually coming from a different source entirely.
From the historical record
“needless to say ironical), Kirschrot (Cherry-red), Temperaturwechsel (Change-of-temperature), Kanalgeruch (Canal - smell), Kiissemich (Kiss -me), Muttermilch (Mother's-milk), Mandelbliith (Almond- blossom) ; while, in some cases, nonsensical names were bestowed through misunderstandings, as, for example, when a Jew…”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)