Bock
Usually a German and Dutch surname, with roots in a word for a male goat or a pointed/bucklike shape; in some cases it may be a short form of older personal names.
The #2,691 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 23,072 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Bock is most commonly linked to German and Dutch words meaning a he-goat or buck. As a nickname, it could describe someone thought to resemble a buck in some way, or it may have been applied metaphorically to a lively, stubborn, or forceful person. Some historical surname dictionaries also connect forms like Bock to older words for something bow-shaped or pointed, so in a few lines of descent the name may have developed from a descriptive term rather than an animal nickname.
History
The name appears in medieval records in Germany and the Low Countries, and it spread later through migration into Britain, North America, and other English-speaking countries. Because Bock is a common short, Germanic surname shape, it may also have arisen independently in more than one family line. In English sources, similar spellings sometimes get grouped with related continental forms rather than treated as a single origin.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In German, bock can also mean a he-goat, which is why the surname often shows up in the same family of names as other animal-based nicknames.
From the historical record
“BOCK Alice de la Roche, co. Camb., 1273. A. Gilbert de la Roche, co. WilU, ibid. William de la Roch, co. Soms., ibid. A£nes de la Roche, co. Cunb., ao Edw. L R. 1660. Bapt. — Seenehouae, s. John”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)Notable people named Bock
- Fedor von Bock (1880–1945)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.