Scherer
An occupational surname meaning a shearer, barber, or related cutter of cloth or hair.
The #2,682 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 23,005 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Scherer comes from Middle High German scheraere, meaning a shearer or barber. The same root could also refer more specifically to a field surgeon or to someone who sheared cloth. In other words, the name originally described a person by trade, not by family lineage.
History
German surname lists from the 19th and early 20th centuries treat Scherer as a straightforward occupational name, and English Shearer is a close equivalent. The name has long been established in German-speaking areas and later spread through migration to North America and elsewhere.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Old sources note that the same occupational root could cover barbers, cloth-shearers, and even field surgeons, since these jobs overlapped in premodern usage.
From the historical record
“Scheer a) I. s. Scar b) III. mhd. scher der „Scherer, Barbier". FN. Scheer (latinis. Rasor). Zss. Bart- scheer. Tuchscheer. 15*”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen