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ArchivesRe: French surnames
in reply to a message by Anonyme
MERCIER: English and French: occupational name for a trader, from Old French mercier (see Mercer).
MERCER: English and Catalan: occupational name for a trader, from Old French mercier, Late Latin mercarius (an agent derivative of merx, genitive mercis, ‘merchandise’). In Middle English the term was applied particularly to someone who dealt in textiles, especially the more costly and luxurious fabrics such as silks, satin, and velvet.
GAUTHIER: French: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements wald ‘rule’ + hari, heri ‘army’ (see Walter). This name is also found in Switzerland and may have been brought to the U.S. from there.
DUFOUR: French: occupational nickname for a baker, from du four ‘(the man) from the oven’.
LECOMTE: French: variant of Leconte
LECONTE: French: from the Old French title of rank conte ‘count’, either a nickname or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a count.
(All of this is taken from: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press)
MERCER: English and Catalan: occupational name for a trader, from Old French mercier, Late Latin mercarius (an agent derivative of merx, genitive mercis, ‘merchandise’). In Middle English the term was applied particularly to someone who dealt in textiles, especially the more costly and luxurious fabrics such as silks, satin, and velvet.
GAUTHIER: French: from a Germanic personal name composed of the elements wald ‘rule’ + hari, heri ‘army’ (see Walter). This name is also found in Switzerland and may have been brought to the U.S. from there.
DUFOUR: French: occupational nickname for a baker, from du four ‘(the man) from the oven’.
LECOMTE: French: variant of Leconte
LECONTE: French: from the Old French title of rank conte ‘count’, either a nickname or an occupational name for a servant in the household of a count.
(All of this is taken from: Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press)
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