Meaning and origin
The last name Parker has its origins in early medieval England, deriving from the Old French word "parc" meaning "enclosed area" or "park." Initially an occupational surname, it referred to someone who was a gamekeeper or guardian of a nobleman's hunting park. The name gradually spread throughout England and later to other English-speaking countries, becoming a popular and widespread family name over time.
Surname origins are rarely settled: one spelling can have several sources, and families often took a name for reasons nobody wrote down. Check it against the sources below before you rely on it.
#56
Parker was the 56th most common surname in the 2010 US Census, with 336,221 people, about 114 in every 100,000.
Who carries it
Surnames like Parker
Names it is linked with, then names with the same origin and a similar standing.
Check the sources
- Forebears: where Parker is found around the world
- The Internet Surname Database: a second opinion on the origin
- US Census Bureau: the 2010 surname figures used here
For a name you are serious about, compare the dictionaries: Reaney and Wilson, A Dictionary of English Surnames; Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names.