Mardis
An uncommon surname whose form may be tied to a personal name such as Martin or to a Romance-language variant, but its exact origin is uncertain.
The #9,620 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 91,399 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The historical evidence for Mardis is thin and somewhat speculative. One 19th-century discussion connects it loosely with Mars and names like Martial or Martin, but also notes a spelling problem that makes that explanation doubtful. A safer reading is that it reflects a Romance or French-influenced surname form whose deeper source is not securely established.
History
The name appears to be rare in historical records and is not tied here to a single well-documented surname line. The excerpts do not provide a clear geographic trail, so any broader history would be conjectural. In modern use, Mardis is best treated as a rare family name of uncertain derivation.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The old etymological discussion explicitly warns that deriving the name from Mars is awkward because the spelling does not fit neatly.
From the historical record
“que tous nos étymologistes, malgré la difficulté de faire venir corrccte- meut Mardis de Mars, comme eu vienneut Martial et Martin. Il y a dans Marciis uu c qui ne peut s'ex- pliquer de la sorte. Frappés de cet inconvénient, certains érudits eut préféré donner à Marcu3 comme”
— Dictionnaire des noms (French surnames)