Taft
An English and Scottish surname from a word for a homestead or plot of land.
The #3,933 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 34,123 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Taft is a northern English and Scottish form of Toft, a word for a site, homestead, or piece of ground where a dwelling stood. The surname therefore began as a topographic name for someone who lived at or near such a place. In older Scots usage, the same word could refer to a messuage or dwelling holding.
History
The name appears in northern Britain, especially where Norse-influenced vocabulary survived in local speech. Harrison explicitly treats Taft as a northern form of Toft, and later records show it as a established surname in Britain and in the United States. In America, it became most familiar through the political Taft family, including President William Howard Taft.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The surname is also linked to the old Scots word taft, used for a dwelling or messuage, which helps explain its very concrete, place-based origin.
From the historical record
“TAFT, a North, form of Toft, q.v. (as 'craft' is "Taft, a messuage".- °f '<=™ft') Jamieson, Scot Diet. TAGART "1 ((.gjj J j,pjjjj. jjf MaoTaggart, q.v. TAGERT TAGGART”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)