Locke
An English and Scottish surname that may come from a place-name, a stream or dam, or—less certainly—from a nickname linked to Norse myth.
The #1,272 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 11,169 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Locke is usually treated as an English or Scottish name with several possible origins. One explanation connects it with a local feature such as a lock, dam, or water barrier; another relates it to forms like Loch or a place-name element meaning a lake or inlet. An older and more speculative suggestion in 19th-century scholarship links it to Old Norse Loki, used as a mocking nickname for an unpleasant or troublesome person.
History
Medieval records show early spellings such as de Luke, Lok, and Locke in different parts of England, suggesting that the name was established fairly early and may have had more than one local source. In Scotland and Ireland it also appears in later records, and some bearers may represent variants or anglicized forms of related names. Because the surname has multiple plausible derivations, its exact origin can vary from family to family.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century etymologist even proposed a link with Loki, the Norse trickster god, though that idea is now best treated as a colorful possibility rather than a settled fact.
From the historical record
“land. LOCKE. 1 . A place where rivers meet with a partial obstruction from a wooden dam. 2. The same as Loch. LOCKE. The Scandinavian god of mis- chief—the Evil Principle of the Northern mythology— was called Lok, and the name may have been afterwards a sobriquet of derision applied to a bad or injurious man.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom