Kitchen
An occupational surname for someone who worked in a noble household kitchen, often a cook’s servant or kitchen worker.
The #2,390 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 20,352 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is usually explained as an occupational name from Middle English kychene, kytchen, meaning 'kitchen,' ultimately from Old French cuisine and Latin cocina/cucina, 'cooking place.' In surname use, it likely referred to a person employed in or associated with a great household kitchen. Related forms such as Kitchener and Kitching reflect the same origin.
History
Lower explicitly glossed KITCHEN and KITCHENER as probably denoting a servitor in the kitchen of a medieval nobleman. Bardsley likewise grouped Kitchen with other household-office surnames such as Pantry and Porter, showing how often these names arose from domestic service roles. The name is established in Britain and later carried to North America and other English-speaking regions.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Kitchen is one of several surnames that began as a job title in a large medieval household, alongside names like Pantry, Butler, and Porter.
From the historical record
“pher. KITCHEN. KITCHENER. Probably a name given to a servitor in the kitchen of some medieval nobleman. KlTCHIN. KITCHING. See Kitchen. KITE. The bird— like Eagle, Falcon, Ilawk, Sec. KITSON. The sou of Kitt, i.e. Christo- pher. KITT. A ' nurse-name' of Christopher.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United Kingdom