Craig
A classic Scottish place-name surname meaning someone who lived by a rock or crag.
The #332 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 3,338 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Craig comes from a Scots and Gaelic word for a rock, crag, or rocky outcrop. In surname use, it usually began as a topographic name for someone living near such a feature, or as a habitational name from one of several places called Craig in Scotland. The related forms Craigie and Craggy point to the same rocky-place idea.
History
The name is strongly associated with Scotland and appears in many place-derived forms in older surname lists. It spread widely within the English-speaking world through Scottish migration, especially from the 18th century onward. In some cases it may also reflect families identified with specific Scottish parishes or estates named Craig.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older surname dictionaries note several Scottish parishes and estates called Craig, which is why the name can be both a topographic and a habitational surname.
From the historical record
“CRAGGY. Probably Craigie. CRAIG. A parish in Forfarshire, and an estate in Perthshire. As a topographical expression, Craig has the same meaning as Carrick, Avhich see. CRAIGHEAD. A place in the parish of Dailly, co. Ayr. CRAIGIE. Parishes in cos. Ayr, Perth, and Linlithgow.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Craig
- Daniel Craig (b. 1968)
- Rachel Weisz (b. 1970)
- Princess Lilian, Duchess of Halland (1915–2013)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.