Jump to content

Walker (surname)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This is an old revision of this page, as edited by Wire723 (talk | contribs) at 19:47, 25 November 2016 (Undid 2 revisions by Heyo Simba - no evidence of notability). The present address (URL) is a permanent link to this revision, which may differ significantly from the current revision.

Walker
Pronunciation/ˈwɔːkər/
Language(s)Middle English, Scots, German, Kalenjin
Origin
MeaningA walker, or one who "walked" on raw, damp cloth in order to thicken it.; "Hunter" in Kalenjin languages
Region of originEngland, Scotland, Germany, Netherlands, Kenya
Other names
Related namesWelker, Wallker, Walkyr, Walkere, Wealcan (Old English), Walcere (Middle English)

Walker is a surname meaning either a fuller, derived from the Middle English walkcere, meaning "a fuller of cloth," or an officer whose duty consisted of walking or inspecting a certain space of forest ground. The origin may be Dutch or German as Walker is the modern German for 'Fuller,' with weavers fleeing religious persecution in North West Europe settling along the North Eastern English coast (cf the town of Walker near Newcastle). The name is also found within African Kenyan tribes.

With close to 100,000 bearers, Walker is the 18th most common surname in England.[1] As of the 2000 U.S. Census, 501,307 people had the surname Walker, making it the 28th most common surname in America.[2] It is the 14th most common surname in Australia, with 26,688 people as of 2007.[3]

Notable people

Arts and letters

Business

Film and radio

Musicians

Actors

Dancers

Military

Politics and law

Science

Sports

Miscellaneous

Disambiguations

Given name

Notable persons with "Walker" as their given name.

Fictional characters

Other

  • Colorow Ignacio Ouray Walkara, Ute chief, also called "Walker"

See also

References

  1. ^ "Forebears". Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  2. ^ "Genealogy Data: Frequently Occurring Surnames from Census 2000 - U.S. Census Bureau". U.S. Census Bureau. Retrieved 14 November 2011.
  3. ^ IP Australia. "Search for Australian Surnames". Government of Australia. Retrieved 2007-05-14.