Nason
A surname most likely from a shortened form of a personal name, though its exact origin is not certain.
The #5,738 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 51,117 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Nason is usually treated as a patronymic form built from a personal name rather than from a place or occupation. One plausible explanation is that it developed from the biblical name Mnason, which appears in older sources and can yield the shorter form Nason by loss of the initial consonant cluster. Another possibility is that it is a variant or reduced form of names such as Nathan or Nayson-type surnames, but the evidence is not strong enough to be definitive.
History
The name appears in older English and American records, and it was established enough by the 19th century to be listed among familiar surnames in onomastic works. In North America it is found as a relatively uncommon family name, with a modest but persistent presence into the modern era. Because early surname writers often linked it to biblical or nickname-based forms, the exact line of descent may vary by family.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 19th-century source even grouped Nason with other surnames that look like shortened personal names, reflecting how surname scholars of the time often tried to read family names through first-name origins.
From the historical record
“cordial ; while, on the other hand, Messrs. Nay, Nay- son and Nason, Nott, Nevers, Nerey, Naromore, Denio, and Miss Repell, seem quite the reverse. Mr. Denyer lives at Toronto, C.W. Mr. Woodnot vras ]3resent during the last days of the English poet Herbert. Willing is found here, and it is one of the first families…”
— Suffolk Surnames (3rd ed.)