Spear
A surname that usually began as a nickname or occupational name for a spear-bearer or spearman.
The #2,712 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 23,242 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Spear comes from Old English spere, meaning 'spear' or 'lance.' As a surname, it was used for someone associated with the weapon, either because he carried one professionally or because the name was applied as a vivid nickname. Related forms were also influenced by medieval terms for soldiers and spear-bearers.
History
The name is recorded by 19th-century surname writers as an old English formation and is treated as analogous to names like Sword and Pike. It may also overlap with other surnames or spellings such as Speer and Spearman, which were sometimes explained through the same weapon word. In some cases, later spelling variation and regional pronunciation helped the name settle into the modern form Spear.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Old English poetry could use the word for 'ash' to mean 'spear,' because spear shafts were often made of ash wood.
From the historical record
“Richard Spekeman. — Hund. Rolls- SPEAR (Eng.) i meton. for a Spearman [M.E. O.E. spere, a spear] 2 a form of Spyer, q.v. SPEARING (Eng.) i representing an A.-Sax. * S/>m«^=SPERE's Son [O.E. spere, a spear (neuter, like O.Sax. sper; hvA O.H.Ger. sper, as mod. speer, was mostly”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)