Sickler
An occupational surname for someone who used a sickle, especially in harvesting or mowing.
The #9,265 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 87,862 Americans shares it.
Etymology
This surname is most likely occupational, formed from a word for a sickle or sickle-user. The English surname tradition links it to a field worker or mower who used a sickle at harvest time. In German, comparable forms also point to an agent noun from a word meaning “sickle” or “reaper,” so the name may have arisen independently in more than one language area.
History
The name appears in English-language surname lists alongside other labor-based names for farm work, which supports an occupational reading. It is also compatible with German naming patterns, where surnames were often formed from tools, trades, or farm tasks. In the United States, the name is uncommon but established, with bearers documented in the 19th century.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
19th-century surname compilers grouped Sickler with names like Cropper, Harrower, and Gleaner as a harvest-related occupational name.
From the historical record
“Cropper, Crapper. — Occup. * the cropper/ a mower, a sickler, a field-labourer. With Crapper, cf. Crafter for Crofter, Meadowcraft for Meadowcroft, &c.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (alternate scan)