Throckmorton
A place-based English surname from a Worcestershire village name that probably meant “rocky moor town.”
The #9,964 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 95,351 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is generally taken from the place name Throckmorton in Worcestershire. The historical forms suggest an old English place-name made up of elements meaning roughly “rock,” “moor,” and “town/settlement,” though 19th-century writers disagreed on the exact breakdown. One common explanation reads it as “a town on a rock in a moor,” while another connects the first element with an old personal name.
History
The name is tied to the Worcestershire place and was borne by medieval families associated with that locality. Later bearers helped spread the surname beyond its original home, and the spelling Throgmorton also appears in historical records. A London street name, Throgmorton Street, is linked indirectly to the family and the place-name tradition.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Throgmorton Street in London preserves an older spelling of the family name, which in turn points back to the Worcestershire place.
From the historical record
“THR1ST (Eng.) Bold, Brave [O.E. J>r/rf] THROCKMORTON (Eng.) Bel. to Throck- morton (Wore), 13th cent. Trokemartuite, Trokemertutt, c. i2ooTrochemerton [the first two elements prob. represent an A.-Sax. pers. name Thracmier {DragmtEr is recor- ded), f. Yracu, force, energy, violence, and mdre, famous (for the…”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)