Wayne
A surname often treated as a short form or spelling variant of Waine, probably tied to a wain or wagon.
The #3,498 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 30,225 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually connected with Middle English "wain," meaning a wagon or cart, so it likely began as an occupational name for a wagoner or carter. Some 19th-century surname books also treat Wayne as a variant or shortened form of Waine, reinforcing the same basic sense. In older scholarship, a few related spellings are grouped together, but the wagon-related explanation is the clearest.
History
The name appears as a rare English form in county-based surname notes, especially in Derbyshire, and is linked there with Waine. Historical references also show it circulating in England in forms such as Wainman and related occupational surnames. In the United States, Wayne is also widely known through the popularity of the given name and famous bearers, which may have reinforced it as a surname spelling.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname indexes sometimes place Wayne beside Wain and Wainman as part of the same family of wagon-related names.
From the historical record
“2 for Waithman, q.v. WAYMOUTH for Weymouth, q.v. WAYNE = Waine, q.v. WAY RE = Ware, q.v. WAYTE}=Wait(e,q.v. WAYTH 1 ^ yNeXM^ Q v WAYTHE f watnie, q.v. WEAFER = Weaver, q.v. WEAKLEY = Weekley, q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)