Bomar
A rare surname that most likely began as a shortened or altered form of an older Norman-French place-name surname.
The #9,338 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 88,542 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The little evidence available points to Bomar being related to older locational surnames built on the name Somerville, especially in its shortened or altered forms. The excerpt suggests a connection with the Norman-French place-name tradition behind the family name de Somerville, which was later simplified in spelling and pronunciation in English use. On that reading, Bomar is not a transparent word with an obvious modern meaning, but an evolved surname from a medieval place-based name.
History
The name appears to be very uncommon and is likely a later reduced spelling of an older aristocratic or gentry surname tradition associated with Somerville. Because the source excerpt is incidental rather than a full entry, the exact pathway from Somerville to Bomar is uncertain, and the name may have been shaped by local pronunciation and spelling variation. In modern records it survives as a rare American surname.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A single century of record-keeping can make a medieval surname branch look like a completely different modern name, and Bomar may be one of those cases.
From the historical record
“Somerville, BommervUle, Somarrail, Somerrell, Bomar- wlll. — Local, ' de Somerville.* Lower says, ' The progenitor of the noble family was Walter de Someiw vUlt lord of Wicknor, te., in StafJordshire, and of Aston Somer-”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instances