Goodman
A surname that can mean either “son of Gudmund” or “good man,” and was also used as a respectful form of address.
The #451 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,222 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname has more than one likely source. One line of explanation treats it as from the old personal name Gudmund, a common early Germanic name, which would make Goodman a patronymic surname. Another explanation takes it from Middle English goodman, a respectful title for a husband, householder, or respected ordinary man, used as a nickname or status term. In historical spelling and pronunciation, the personal-name source and the descriptive title source could overlap, so the surname may have arisen independently in more than one family.
History
The surname is recorded early in England and was also used as a term of address in everyday speech, which helped it become a hereditary surname. Nineteenth-century surname scholars noted both the personal-name explanation and the nickname/status explanation, and the name remained widespread in English-speaking countries. In some cases it may also have been influenced by similar continental forms or by local habits of naming respectable householders as “goodman.”
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Older English usage made “goodman” a polite way to refer to a married or established man, roughly like “Mr.” before modern titles became standard.
From the historical record
“ness. GOODMAN. 1. Gudmund, a very common Teutonic and A-Sax. bai^tismal name. 2. A common form of address in old times. Also a complimentaiy sobriquet. Thus a great-grandson of the famous Wil- liam Bclward was called Goodman. Eng. Surn. ii. 49. GOODRAM. As Goodrum. GOODRICH. 1. A parish in oo. Here- ford. 2. See…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Goodman
- John Goodman (b. 1952)
- Benny Goodman (1909–1986)
- Amy Goodman (b. 1957)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.