Hampton
A place-based surname from one of many English settlements called Hampton, originally meaning a “home farm” or “estate.”
The #482 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 4,444 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Hampton is a habitational surname taken from any of several English places called Hampton. The place-name generally comes from Old English elements meaning “home” and “farm, estate, or settlement,” so the literal sense is something like “home estate.” In some cases the second element may reflect an enclosed homestead or settlement rather than a strict farm in the modern sense.
History
The name became hereditary when people were identified by the village or parish they came from. Because Hampton is a common English place-name, the surname arose independently in several counties, not from a single family line. It is found early in medieval records and later spread widely through England and then overseas.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Lower specifically lists Hampton as a parish or place-name found in multiple English counties, which is why the surname has several independent local origins.
From the historical record
“Middlesex and Berks. HAMPTON. Parishes and places in cos. Middlesex, Chester, Warwick, Hereford, Oxford, Worcester, Devon, Salop, Wilts, &c. HAMSIIAR. This Sussex family derive their name, not from the adjoining county, Hampshire, but from an estate called Hammesherne in the parish of Slaugham. Inq. Non. 13-11.…”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom