Newport
A habitational surname for someone from one of the many places called Newport, literally a “new town” or “new port.”
The #7,816 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 72,903 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Newport is a place-name surname taken from any of several English and British places called Newport. The name is built from Old English newe, meaning “new,” plus port, which in medieval place-names could mean either a harbour or a market town/city. Some early writers also connected the second element with Latin portus or porta, reflecting the same general idea of a port or town gate.
History
The surname arose independently in more than one place, since Newport was a common medieval place-name across England and Wales. Historical sources note Newports in Cornwall, Essex, Monmouth, Salop, Bucks, York, Fife, and elsewhere, so the surname does not point to a single family origin. In some cases the place-name was Latinized in medieval records as Novus Burgus or similar forms.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Medieval writers sometimes Latinized Newport as Novus Burgus, literally “new borough.”
From the historical record
“dwelling, estate] NEWPORT (Eng.) Bel. to Newport = i the New Haven [O.E. niwe + port, Lat. port-US, a harbour] 2 the New Town [O.E. niwe + port; Lat. porta, a city-gate] The name of Newport, LW., was Latinized both as Novus Partus and Novus Butgus ; Newport, Salop, was called”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)