Senn
A surname with several possible roots, most likely from a short Germanic name or a place- or status-based form, depending on the family line.
The #6,273 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 56,671 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Senn is best treated as a short Germanic name whose exact origin can vary by region. In Swiss and Alemannic usage, senn is connected with mountain dairying and the Alpine herdsman or cheesemaker known as a Senn, so some families may have taken the name from that occupation. In other cases it may reflect a shortened personal name or a similar Germanic root, rather than a single universal source.
History
The name is found chiefly in German-speaking areas, especially Switzerland, and it also appears among emigrant families in North America. Because the form is very short, unrelated families may have adopted or inherited it from different local sources. Modern U.S. bearers are therefore not necessarily connected to one another by a single ancestral line.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In Swiss German, a Senn is traditionally the person in charge of an Alpine dairy or mountain pasture.
From the historical record
“mann ", vgl. in Wallis das Geschlecht xen Gafinen „bei den Hütten** aus capanna, in der lingua rustica = Bauemhütte, Senn- hütte — dah. franz. cabane, engl, cabine (Gatschet, Ortsetymolog. Forschungen). GAID I. langobard. gaida, angels. g&du „lÄUzenspitze."”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen