Cherry
A surname that can come from a place by a cherry tree, or from French Huguenot roots in some families.
The #970 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 8,606 Americans shares it.
Etymology
In English use, Cherry is commonly explained as a topographic surname for someone who lived by a cherry tree or a cherry orchard. The word ultimately comes from Old English and French forms meaning the fruit tree itself. Some historical sources also give Cherry a separate French Huguenot origin, connecting it with the Norman place-name Cheris and the Latinized form De Ceraso.
History
English records show Cherry as an established surname in medieval England. Later, some bearers were identified in 19th-century scholarship as descended from French Protestant or Huguenot families, so the name may have multiple independent origins. Because of that, not every modern Cherry family necessarily shares the same root.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Bardsley treated Cherry as a classic English topographic surname, alongside names like Crabtree and Ash, all based on where someone lived.
From the historical record
“cester and Salop. CHERRY. Of Fr. Huguenot origin, and said to be descended from the family of De Cheries, seigneurs of Brauvel, Beauval, &c., in Normandy. B.L.G. Cheris is a plaee near Avranclies. The name is latin- ized De Ceraso. CHI 59 CHERR.YMAN. A grower of cherries or a dealer in that fruit. So Applcman,”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom