Brush
A surname with several possible roots, including a nickname for someone linked to brushwood or broom, and in some cases a shortened form of a personal name like German Brusch.
The #5,218 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 46,150 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is not straightforward, and the historical sources point to more than one possible source. One explanation connects it with English brushwood or with a term for broom, making it a nickname or descriptive name for someone living by scrubby growth or working with brushwood. Another line of evidence suggests that some bearers may instead descend from a personal name such as German Brusch.
History
Nineteenth-century surname writers treated Brush as uncommon and were not fully agreed on its origin. In England it appears sporadically, and some examples may also reflect local forms or later spelling changes rather than a single clear source. Because the evidence is mixed, the name is best treated as having more than one possible origin depending on the family line.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Early surname scholars even noted that Brush could be rare enough in some English areas to prompt comments on how few bearers were known there.
From the historical record
“thumberland. BRUSH. Perhaps from Germ, hnisch, broom. See Broome. BRUSIIFIELD. A small village and manor in the parish of Bakewell, co. Derby, anciently written Brightrithfield and Brith- rithtfield (quasi, "the field of Brihteric " — an A-Sax. personal name). The family have long been located about Eyam, a few…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom