Myer
Usually a shortened form of Meyer/Meier, or in some cases a local name tied to a mire or marsh.
The #5,507 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 48,875 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Myer is not fully straightforward. In English records it is often treated as a reduced form of Meyer or Meier, a name that could be occupational in German for a steward or farm administrator. Some scholars also connect it with Middle English and Old French mire, meaning a physician, though in some cases it may instead be a local name connected with a marshy place, from 'mire' in the sense of bog or mire.
History
19th- and early-20th-century surname writers disagreed about this name, which is why it is best treated cautiously. In English usage it may overlap with Myers, and some bearers likely inherited it as an anglicized spelling of continental Meyer. The form also appears in local or descriptive contexts, so more than one origin may lie behind modern families with this surname.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Weekley notes that Myer/Myers was often treated as local in origin, but also says many cases may actually descend from French mire and have been confused with Mair or Mayor.
From the historical record
“MYERS, Myer's (Son) : v. Myer. MYERSCOUGH (Scand.) Bel. to Myerscough (Lanes), A.D. 1317 Mirescogh = the Bog- Wood [M.E. mire, myre, O.N. m^-r, a bog + M.E. sco{u)gh, O.N. skdg-r, a wood]”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)