Strickland
An English place-based surname meaning “from Strickland,” a Westmorland/Westmorland-name explained as the land of young cattle or steers.
The #494 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,556 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Strickland is an English habitational surname from places in what is now Cumbria, especially Great and Little Strickland and related townships in the old county of Westmorland. Early forms such as Stirkland point to Old English stirc or stirk, meaning a young bovine or steer, plus land, meaning land or territory. In short, the name most likely meant “the land associated with steers” or “pasture land for young cattle.”
History
Medieval records show bearers such as William de Stirkland, and the surname was tied to the Strickland family of Westmorland. Later genealogical writers associated the name with a landed family descending from Walter de Stirkland in the reign of Henry III. From England, the surname spread widely through the English-speaking world.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Several nearby places in old Westmorland carry the Strickland name, including Great and Little Strickland and Strickland Kettle.
From the historical record
“the county." B.L.G. STRICKLAND. "Descended from Walter de Stirkland, Knight, so called from the pasture ground of the j'ouug cattle called stirlis or steers, in the parish of Morland, in the county of ^Vestmore- land, who was living in the reign of Henry III." Shirley's No'hle and Gentle Men. STRING. Perhaps a…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom