Tobey
An English and Jewish surname that usually comes from the personal name Tobias or Toby, meaning “God is good.”
The #8,732 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 82,201 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Tobey is generally a surname formed from the given name Toby, itself a pet form of Tobias. Tobias comes from Hebrew Tobiyyah, meaning “Yahweh is good” or “God is good.” In the historical surname books, Tobey is treated as a baptismal or patronymic surname: essentially “son of Toby/Tobias.”
History
The surname appears in English-language records as a variant of Toby and Tobie, and it is also listed among forms derived from Tobias. Later surname writers note related spellings such as Tobin, Tobyn, and even Sobey as a changed form in some traditions. In modern usage it is found mainly in English-speaking countries, especially the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A 1913 surname compendium explicitly groups Tobey with forms descending from Tobias and notes a later altered form, Sobey.
From the historical record
“son of Theobald * ; v. Tebbitt. LondOD, I, 3 i New Yotk, 1, o. Toby, Tobey.— BapL ' the son of Tobias,' from the nick. Toby. 'AndkantelkofTobye, And of twelve Aponla.^ IW P. 3667-8.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances