Matthews
A classic patronymic surname meaning “son of Matthew.”
The #226 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 2,351 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Matthews is an English patronymic built from the personal name Matthew, with a final -s marking “son of” or possession in the older naming pattern. Matthew itself comes through Old French and Latin from the Hebrew name Mattityahu, meaning “gift of God.” So the surname originally identified someone as the son or descendant of a man named Matthew.
History
The name was established in medieval England and later became one of several common Matthew-based surnames, alongside forms such as Mathews, Matthewson, and Matson. It spread widely in Britain and then to North America and other English-speaking countries. Historical surname writers also noted that Welsh naming practices often used a final -s in the same patronymic way, which helped reinforce forms like Matthews.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Nineteenth-century surname writers explicitly grouped Matthews with other English names ending in -s, like Williams and Jones, as a genitive-style patronymic.
From the historical record
“of Mahon, q.v. MATTHEWS, Matthew's (Son) \ v. MATTHEWSON,Matthew'sSon; Matthew MATTHIAS, V. Matthew. MATTINSON 1 for Matthewson a V MATTISON I '""^ "viaxtnewson, q.v. MATTOCK for Maddock, q.v. MATTOCKS for Maddocks, q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)Notable people named Matthews
- Stanley Matthews (1915–2000)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.