Gage
An English surname that may come from a nickname or office connected with measuring, though one old family line was later claimed to be Norman in origin.
The #2,187 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 18,583 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Gage has at least two plausible explanations in the older surname literature. One line of thought connects it with Middle English and Old French words meaning a pledge, surety, or measure, which would fit a nickname or occupational form related to gauging or measuring. Another tradition, recorded in antiquarian sources, treats Gage as an Anglo-Norman family name said to descend from a De Gaugy or similar form brought to England at the Conquest; that claim is historically notable but not fully certain.
History
Older genealogical writers associated the name with a medieval or Norman lineage said to have settled in England after the Conquest, and later heraldic tradition linked the family to the peerage. At the same time, surname dictionaries also point to related forms such as Gauger and Gaiger, showing that some bearers may descend from occupational or nickname-based forms rather than a single aristocratic line. In modern use, Gage is best treated as an English surname with mixed or uncertain origins.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same family name appears in old sources both as a supposed Norman arrival and as part of a cluster of surnames tied to gauging or measuring, which is a good example of how one surname can gather more than one story over time.
From the historical record
“father. GAGE. The oldest copy of the so-called Battel Abbey Roll mentions a De Gaugy or Gage as having come into England at the time of the Conquest. He settled in the forest of Dean, and his descendants were ennobled. Banks, i. 89. " Modem Heralds trace the genealogy of the family of Gage, now flourishing in the…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Gage
- Phineas Gage (1823–1860)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.