Mangum
A surname of uncertain origin, probably a regional or variant spelling shaped by older English place-name and dialect forms.
The #3,723 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 32,448 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Mangum is generally treated as an English surname of uncertain origin rather than a straightforward occupational or patronymic name. In many cases, surnames of this type arose from a local place-name, a vanished hamlet, or a dialect spelling that was later standardized in different ways. The ending -um may reflect older spelling variation rather than a separate meaning, and the root has been proposed in connection with English place-name elements, but the exact source is not securely established.
History
The surname is especially associated with the United States, where it is now more common than in Britain. Like many English surnames carried across the Atlantic, it likely became fixed in spelling after migration and then developed regional American concentrations. Because the name is relatively uncommon and the etymology uncertain, there is no single well-attested historical origin story that can be stated confidently.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Because the name is uncommon and its early forms were not standardized, Mangum has several plausible historical spellings rather than one universally accepted source form.