Booth
An English surname meaning someone who lived near a booth, hut, or temporary shelter—and in some cases one taken from a place called Booths.
The #697 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 6,250 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Booth comes from Middle English both or bothe, meaning a booth, hut, or temporary shelter. The word is ultimately related to Old Norse and appears in medieval forms such as de la Boothe. As a surname, it usually began as a locative name for someone living at or near a booth or small dwelling; in Lancashire, some major Booth families also took their name from a place called Booths.
History
The name is especially strong in Lancashire and Cheshire, where one prominent family was established by the 13th century. Early records show medieval spellings like de la Boothe and del Booth. The surname later spread widely in northern England and beyond, helped by the prominence of local gentry families.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley notes that Booth became especially ramified in South Lancashire, reflecting how concentrated the surname was there for centuries.
From the historical record
“BOOTIIMAN, See Beutyman. BOOTH. " An house made of botccs." Tyndall. A temporary building or slied, in Low Iiat. hotha. The form in tlie H.R. is De la Boothe. But the great family of B. of Lancashire and Cheshire take their designation from their lordship of Booths in the former county, where they resided in the…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Booth
- John Wilkes Booth (1838–1865)
- Shirley Booth (1898–1992)
- William Booth (1829–1912)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.