Thurston
A surname usually meaning “Thor’s farm” or “Thurston’s estate,” often taken from English place-names in Norfolk and Suffolk.
The #2,385 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 20,267 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Thurston is generally a habitational surname from English places called Thurston, especially in Suffolk and Norfolk. The place-name is usually explained as “Thor’s tūn,” meaning “Thor’s farm, estate, or enclosure,” from the Old Norse god Thor and Old English tūn. Some older writers also suggested influence from a personal name such as Turstin/Turstan, so a few early bearers may have taken the name from that source rather than directly from the place-name.
History
The surname is recorded in medieval English documents from the 13th and early 14th centuries, including Norfolk examples such as William de Thurston and Ricardus de Thurston. Later family histories and county records show the name spreading beyond East Anglia, and it remains established in England and the United States. Some sources note occasional confusion with the similar surname Thurstan.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
A different historical explanation linked Thurston to the old Teutonic personal name Turstin, which appears in Domesday-era records.
From the historical record
“of Thor. THURSTON (Eng.) Bel. to Thurston (Suff.) and Thur(s)ton (Norf.), 13th cent. Thurs- ton = Thur's Estate [v. under Thor, and -I- O.E. tun, farm, manor, etc.] William de Thurston (Norf.).— Hund. Rolls, A.D. 1274. Ric'us de Thurston (Norf.).— Charter-Rolls, A.D. 1303-4. Confused with Thurstan, q.v.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)Notable people named Thurston
- William Thurston (1946–2012)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.