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Position:Home>Genealogy> What is the origin of the last name Witherspoon?Question:witherspoon Scottish: of uncertain origin, perhaps a habitational name from an unidentified place named with Middle English wether ‘sheep’, ‘ram’ + spong, spang, a dialect term for a narrow strip of land. Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4 Best Answer - Chosen by Asker: witherspoon Scottish: of uncertain origin, perhaps a habitational name from an unidentified place named with Middle English wether ‘sheep’, ‘ram’ + spong, spang, a dialect term for a narrow strip of land. Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4 They were introduced shortly after the Witherforks. I googled it and found this: (Locality). A grazing-place in the spur of a mountain or hill; Weider, Dutch or Saxon, and span, to unite, bend, extend. Source: An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names With an Essay on their Derivation and Import; Arthur, William, M.A.; New York, NY: Sheldon, Blake, Bleeker & CO., 1857. From the website: http://www.searchforancestors.com/surnam... You can check at: http://www.familysearch.org/Eng/Search/a... for more info. |