Ward (surname)

Ward is a surname of either Old English or Old Gaelic origin, common in English-speaking countries.

Arms of the Ward family include Azure, a cross patoncé or[1] as well as azure, a cross flory or[2]

The Old English name derives from an occupational surname for a civil guard/keeper of the watch, or alternately as a topographical surname from the word werd ("marsh"). The Old Irish surname is linguistically unrelated, and derives from Mac an Bháird ("son of the Bard"), a bárd being a storyteller or poet. An Irish variant is O'Ward. The oldest public record of the surname dates to 1176.[3]

In the 2010 United States Census, Ward was the 79th most common surname.[4] It is the 78th most common surname in Ireland.[5] It was the 31st most common surname in the 1991 UK census and 40th in 2001 census,[6] and in 2007, was found to be the most common surname in Lutterworth, Leicestershire.[7]

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  • Zack Ward (born 1970), Canadian actor
  • Zhavia Ward (born 2001), American singer-songwriter
  • ZZ Ward (born 1986), American singer-songwriter

Fictional characters

See also
  • All pages with titles containing Ward

References
  1. Mosley, Charles, ed. (2003). Burke's Peerage, Baronetage & Knighthood (107 ed.). Burke's Peerage & Gentry. p. 241. ISBN 0-9711966-2-1.
  2. Crozier, William Armstrong (1904). Crozier's General Armory: A Registry of American Families Entitled to Coat Armor. Genealogical association. p. 132. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  3. "Surname: Ward". surnamedb.com. Retrieved 2008-02-12.
  4. "Frequently Occurring Surnames from the 2010 Census". US Census Bureau. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  5. "100 Irish surnames explained". IrelandInformation.com.
  6. Buchhorn, Wolfgang. "Names and That - Ward/Wards". www.lostancestors.eu.
  7. "The 50 most common British surnames, by postal town" (PDF). The Guardian. 15 April 2007. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
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