Maas
A surname most often meaning “of the Maas/Meuse River,” though in some Dutch cases it can also be a short form of Thomas.
The #3,818 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 33,252 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The strongest historical explanation is locational: Maas can mean someone who lived by the River Maas, the Dutch name for the Meuse. The river name is ancient, appearing in Latin as Mosa, and was probably built from older Celtic elements related to “water” or “stream,” with a possible first element meaning “plain.” In Dutch surname tradition, Maas can also be a shortened form of the biblical name Thomas, especially in southern Netherlands, so not every Maas necessarily has the same origin.
History
The name appears in several related surname traditions of the Low Countries and the German-speaking borderlands, with variants such as Maes, Maese, and Van der Maas. Dutch onomastic works also note Maas as a shortened personal name, which helped the surname spread beyond purely river-based origins. In English and German records it may also appear among immigrants from these regions. Because the form is short and common, the surname has more than one historical source.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older Dutch surname studies explicitly connect Maas and Van der Maas with the river name, while also noting that Maas can be a clipped form of Thomas in some areas.
From the historical record
“MAAS, V. the Appendix of Foreign Names. MAB(B (A.-Fr.-Lat.) a dim. olMaiel or Amabel, „ Lat. Amabilis = Amiable, Lovable [Lat. amabil-is] (Celt.) occ. the Wei. mab = Son. "I = Mabb I (q.v.) + the Fr. \ dim. ^uff. -et, -ot.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)