Peart
A surname most likely from a nickname for someone who was lively, brisk, or sprightly.
The #8,808 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 83,063 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Peart is generally explained as coming from an old English dialect word meaning lively, brisk, or sprightly. In that sense, it began as a descriptive nickname for an energetic or quick-moving person. Some older writers also proposed other connections, but the ‘lively’ explanation is the clearest and best supported in the excerpts.
History
19th-century surname writers treated Peart as an English nickname name and noted that the adjective was still used in dialect speech. The name appears in historical records and survives today in England and the United States. Some older speculation tried to connect it with other surnames such as Pert or Perot, but those identifications are less secure.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Lower noted the phrase “peart and lively” as a common Sussex expression for a pair of oxen, showing how everyday speech helped shape surnames.
From the historical record
“PEARSON, V. Pierson. PEART, V. Pert. PEASCOD (Eng.) meton. for a seller of peas- cods [M.E. pese, a pea, pi. pesen ; O.E. pise, pi.pisani Lat. pts-um, a pea + M.E. codd(e, O.E. codd, a bag] PEASE I like Peace, a var. of Pace, q.v. 2 meton. for a seller of Peas [v. under Peascod]”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)