Wallace
A surname usually explained as meaning “Welshman” or “foreigner,” especially in Scotland and northern England.
The #123 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 1,565 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Wallace is most commonly linked to a medieval nickname meaning “the Welshman” or more broadly “the foreigner,” from Anglo-Norman and Middle English forms such as le Waleys / le Waleis, ultimately from the word for Welsh or Welsh-speaking people. The name is often treated as a surname applied to someone of Welsh origin living in Scotland or northern England. Some 19th-century writers also proposed a British or Gaelic personal-name origin, but that explanation is less widely accepted today.
History
The surname is especially associated with Scotland, where it became established early and is famously borne by Sir William Wallace, the 13th-century Scottish patriot. Medieval records show spellings such as Wallas and Wallace, reflecting the unstable spelling of the period. In later centuries the name spread widely in Britain and, through emigration, to North America and other English-speaking regions.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Blind Harry’s 15th-century poem about William Wallace uses the form Wallas as well as Wallace, showing how fluid the spelling was in early sources.
From the historical record
“WALLACE 1 WALLAS J Williame Wallace, wicht [active, strong] and wyse. — Ring of the Roy Robert, 139. In Henry the Minstrel's (Blind Harry's) 'Actis and Deidis of the Illustere and Vailyeand Campioun Schir William Wal- lace' (iS'h cent.) the spelling Wallas ('wicht Wallas') oec. occurs.”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)Notable people named Wallace
- Alfred Russel Wallace (1823–1913)
- William Wallace (1270–1305)
- Henry A. Wallace (1888–1965)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.