Munn
Most likely a surname for someone nicknamed “the monk,” though in some families it may come from a Norman place-name or, less certainly, from Edmund.
The #4,056 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 35,281 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The strongest traditional explanation is that Munn comes from Anglo-French le Moun or le Moigne, meaning “the monk,” ultimately from Old French and Latin roots for a solitary religious. Some writers also connected it with Mohun/Mohon, a Norman place-name, and a few treated Munn as a shortened form of Edmund. The surname therefore has more than one proposed origin, but the “monk” explanation is the best attested in the older surname books.
History
Older English surname dictionaries record medieval forms such as Geoffrey le Moun and Thomas le Mun, showing the name in use in England by the Middle Ages. Later writers noted that Munn was especially common in Kent and spread to other counties over time. The name also appears in related forms such as Munns and Munning, which were treated as derivatives or variant developments.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Some 19th-century surname writers even suggested that Moon could be a related spelling in certain families.
From the historical record
“monach-us] MUNN (Fr.) i Monk, Friar [A.-Ft. m{o)un, pioyne, O.Fr. moytie (Fr. moine), monk; Gr. /iocos, solitary] Ivo le Moyne. — Hund. Rolls. Geoffrey le Moun. — do. , Thomas le Mun. — do. 2 Bel. to Mohun or Mohon (France). MUNNING for Munding, q.v. MUNNINGS, Munning's or Munding's (Son).”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)Notable people named Munn
- Olivia Munn (b. 1980)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.