Origin of Surnames in the English Language

Abstract

This article examines the history of surnames origin in the English language. Examples of the English surnames derived from words of different languages are given. The authors propose the division of surnames according to their origin, taking into account the first name of the ancestor, his residence, as well as social status, occupation, description of his appearance, character and habits. The relevance of the paper is conditioned by the fact that the presented division of the most common surnames according to etymological features gives a more complete picture of the origin of the English surnames and their semantic meanings.