Swift
An English nickname surname for someone notably quick on foot or in movement.
The #1,473 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 12,732 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Swift comes from the Old English word swift, meaning "quick" or "fleet," which continued into Middle English with the same sense. As a surname, it was first used as a nickname for a person known for speed of movement, especially speed on foot. Later it became a hereditary family name.
History
Historical surname dictionaries treat Swift as a straightforward English nickname name, and it has remained common in England and the English-speaking world. It is also well known through the writer Jonathan Swift, whose surname helped keep the name familiar in literary history. The spelling Swift is the standard form, though older records also show Swyft.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same old English root behind Swift also appears in the common English adjective swift, which still means "fast" today.
From the historical record
“man'\ SWIFT (Eng.) [M.E. swyft, O.E. swift, fleet] SWINBANK (Eng. and Scand.) Dweller at the Swine-Bank [O.E. swin = O.N. suin; and see under Bank] A Westmoreland Swinbank occurs in the 1 6th cent, as Swynebank.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)