Longmire
A northern English surname likely referring to someone who lived by a long marsh or boggy tract of land.
The #9,813 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 93,588 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname appears to be built from "long" plus "mire," an old word for a swamp, bog, or marshy ground. In this reading, Longmire originally described a person who lived near, or came from, a long stretch of wet or boggy land. The ending may also reflect the common surname formation seen in local English names.
History
19th-century surname dictionaries treat Longmire as a local or place-based English name, especially associated with northern counties such as Westmorland and Lancashire. Historical records show the name in Cumbria/Lancashire-area sources by the late 1600s and 1700s. It has remained relatively uncommon, but is well established in English-speaking countries.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same source tradition links Longmire with other landscape surnames like Blamire and Hollowmire, all built from old words for wet ground or hollows.
From the historical record
“Lancashire Wills at Richmond, i. 186. 1698. Dorothy Longmire, alias Jack- son, of Torver: ibid. ii. 168. 1738. Buried— John, s. WilKam Loag- mire : St. Mary, Ulverston, p. 261.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)