Benjamin
A biblical surname from the Hebrew personal name meaning “son of the right hand,” often linked with Jewish families in English usage.
The #850 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 7,606 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Benjamin comes from the Hebrew personal name Binyamin, traditionally explained as “son of the right hand.” In the Bible, Benjamin is the name of Jacob’s youngest son, and the name was later adopted as a surname. In English surname use, it usually began as a patronymic or inherited family name taken from the given name.
History
19th-century surname writers such as Lower note that, as a surname, Benjamin was chiefly but not entirely associated with Jewish families in England. The name also generated several shortened or altered forms, including Benn, Bean, Benns, Benson, Benkin, Benny, and Bense. In modern English-speaking countries it is now found well beyond specifically Jewish communities.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Lower explicitly grouped Benjamin with a cluster of shortened surname forms that he saw as derivative of the same base name, including Benn, Bean, and Benson.
From the historical record
“BENHAjM, a tything in co. Berks. BENJAMIN. The personal name. As a surname it is chiefly, but not altogether, confined to the Jewish families. The deri- vative surnames are Benn, Bean, Benns, Benson, Benhacock, Bencock, Benkin, Benny, Bense. BENKIN. See Benjamin. BENN. BENNS. See Benjamin. BENNELL. Benwell, co.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom