Owings
A surname most likely built from the personal name Owen, meaning “descendant of Owen.”
The #7,585 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 70,474 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Owings is generally treated as a surname formed from the given name Owen, with an English patronymic-style ending. The older name Owen is usually linked to Welsh Owain, a traditional personal name whose deeper origin is debated. In this sense, Owings would mean something like “son or descendant of Owen.”
History
19th-century surname writers grouped Owings with other Owen-derived forms such as Owens and Ownes, which supports a patronymic interpretation. The name is now most familiar in the United States, where it survives as a relatively uncommon surname. Spelling with -ings is one of several English adaptations of the same underlying personal name.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Early surname compilations explicitly list Owings among the many forms derived from Owen.
From the historical record
“Off. Owings. Parcells. Nine.”
— Ludus Patronymicus; or, the etymology of curious surnames