Attaway
A surname most likely from a lost or shifted English place name, now fixed in a distinct modern family line.
The #9,222 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 87,364 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Attaway is generally treated as an English surname, probably arising from a place-name or local topographic name that has since become obscure. The opening element may reflect Old English 'æt' or a similar preposition meaning 'at,' with the rest of the name reduced or altered over time through dialect and spelling change. Because the form is not transparent today, the exact original place or phrase is uncertain.
History
The surname is found in English-speaking records and later in the United States, where it survives in relatively small numbers. Like many surnames with uncertain medieval origins, its spelling may have stabilized only after migration and later clerical recording. Modern bearers are especially concentrated in the United States, but the name remains uncommon overall.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Names that begin with 'At-' in English surnames often preserve an old phrase meaning 'at the' or 'at the place called' something, even when the rest of the original name has vanished.