Simon
A very common surname from the biblical personal name Simon, later extended into many related forms like Sims, Simms, and Simpson.
The #397 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 3,837 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Simon comes from the biblical given name Simon, ultimately from Hebrew Shim‘on, usually understood as meaning “he has heard” or “hearing.” In Greek and Latin Christian tradition it was fixed as Simon, and Norman French then helped spread it widely in England as a personal name. As a surname, it most often began as a patronymic, identifying someone as the son or descendant of a man named Simon.
History
The name was common in medieval England and became one of the main sources for a large family of surnames, including Sim, Sims, Simms, Simmonds, Simmons, Symonds, Simpson, and Simkin. Some spellings may also overlap with forms influenced by the Greek nickname simos, meaning “snub-nosed,” but the biblical name is the main source in surname history. Lower notes it as a Christian name of Norman introduction, while Harrison also remarks on occasional confusion with related forms such as Simond.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname Simon helped generate an unusually large cluster of English surnames, especially the widespread -son form Simpson.
From the historical record
“SIMNITT SIMON I a form of Simeon, q.v. The Heb. name seems eventually to have be- come confused with the Gr. nickname Sim6n (St/idx), 'snub-nosed.' . . . and his broSru lacob, and Joseph, and Simon. — St. Matthew, xiii. 55, A.-Sax. vers. 2 There has been some confusion with Simond', q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)