Wrenn
Usually a nickname from the bird name, given to someone thought small, lively, or quick; some older writers also suggested a connection with Rennes in Brittany.
The #6,566 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 59,834 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Wrenn is generally treated as a nickname surname from the wren, the small bird. The bird-name goes back to Middle English and Old English forms such as wrenne / wrenna. In older surname books, a minority view linked Wren/Wrenn to Rennes in Brittany, but the bird explanation is the standard one.
History
The surname is recorded in medieval England, with early forms such as Wrenne and Wrenn appearing in county and parish records. It belongs to the large group of English surnames based on animal and bird nicknames. The spelling with double -n is a later variant of the same name and remains the common modern form in some families.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley grouped Wren with other bird-based surnames like Sparrow, Nightingale, and Woodcock.
From the historical record
“WREN ) (Eng.) a pers, name and nickname WRENN j from the Wren [M.E. wrenne, O.JE. , ' wrenna] ^(Celt.) Lord, Ruler, Chief [O.Wel. rMn] WRENCH (Eng.) is doubtless a nickname f. M.E. ■wrench{e, O.E. wrewc,' 'wile,' 'trick,' 'artifice.'”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)