Surname Wear - Meaning and Origin
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Wear: What does the surname Wear mean?
The last name Wear is derived from an Old English word which refers to one who lived near a weir, a human-made barrier built in a river to divert the flow of water or form a fish trap. The surname may have originally been used to denote a person who worked or lived in the area surrounding a weir, such as a miller, fisherman or ferryman.
The surname Wear is most common in England, particularly in the regions of Northumbria and Cumbria. The highest concentration of the last name is found in the United States, though it is not limited to that country. It is also common in the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia.
The Wear family can trace its roots back to the middle ages, but their exact origins are uncertain. Some of the earliest mentions of the Wear surname are found in the documents preserved at Durham Cathedral among the records of the Palatinate of Durham. A few other records of the surname, such as land grants and estate sales, provide further evidence of the Wear family's presence in the region.
Throughout the centuries, the Wear family has spread to different parts of the world, taking the name with them. The name is often found among descendants of those who emigrated to North America in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries. Today, there are hundreds, if not thousands, of people bearing this surname, many of whom are related either closely or distant.
Order DNA origin analysisWear: Where does the name Wear come from?
The Wear surname is most commonly found in the UK and Ireland, with England having the largest population. It is also relatively common in the US, Canada, and Australia. It is believed to have originated in Northern England, likely originating with a Viking name from personal names beginning with “varr”, meaning “caution” or “watchfulness”. The Wear surname is still fairly common today, especially in the North of England, including areas with significant Viking heritage, such as Lancashire and Cumbria. Outside the UK and Ireland, it is often found in North America, due to the large 17th and 18th century migrations of English settlers to the colonies. It is also found in Australia and New Zealand, thanks to the shipping of English convicts in the 18th century, as well as subsequent waves of migrants from the UK. The Wear surname still exists today, in large numbers all around the world in countries where English, Irish, and Scots have settled.
Variations of the surname Wear
The surname Wear is derived from the Old English word waer which refers to a weir, or dam, used for controlling the flow of a river. The variants, spellings and surnames of this same origin include: Ware, Waer, Wayer, Weare, Weir, Whear, Wheer, Where and Whir.
The different spellings of Wear are found throughout England, Wales and Scotland and can exist in various forms and different dialects, such as War, Wair and Whar. Variations of the spelling Wear can appear as Wear, Making it hard to trace the origins of people with the surname Wear. The Scots often use variant spellings beginning with Wh, and variants of the surname Waer and Ware have been Latinised to Guair or Guaire.
Variations based on today’s most common spellings including Wier, Were, Weare and Wheare, have been found particularly in Cornwall, Devon and Lancashire. Whilst in Ireland, the Anglian variant Waire is found more often.
The surname Wear may often appear in its variations, however the pronunciation is the same and its roots trace back to the same origin. The surnames originating from Wear can range from those of a higher class to those of the peasantry, making the name fairly widespread.
Famous people with the name Wear
- David Wear: professional basketball player and former college teammate of his brother, Travis Wear.
- Travis Wear: professional basketball player
- Marie Wear: also known as Aurora Marie, she was a singer who released a few singles in the 1960s
- Jason Wear: a former professional BMX racing rider
- David Wearne: an Australian composer and academic
- Thomas Wear: a British banker and Conservative politician
- Geoffrey Wear: a British banker and Liberal-handed politician
- Robert Wear: a British professional football player
- Timothy Wear: an American film director, writer, and producer
- Andrew Wear: a British historian and academic