Washington (name)
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| Meaning | Derived from the English place name |
| Region of origin | England |
Washington /ˈwɒʃɪŋtən/ is a male given name and a surname. It most frequently refers to George Washington (1732–1799), the first President of the United States of America.
The name itself is a name of origin and refers to place names in England, such as Washington, Tyne and Wear, from which the ancestors of George Washington are said to have come.
The word became a surname in 1183 when William de Hertburn took the name William de Wassyngtona. In 1657 the name came to Virginia; from 1789 to 1797 George Washington was president. Since this time the given name spread throughout the USA as patriotic. In addition to a genealogical origin of the name, it is also (as with Abraham Lincoln and other persons associated with abolition of slavery in America) a favored assumed name of freed slaves and thus a widely spread surname of their progeny in the black population of the USA.
The name appears also as a male given name, often as a second or third name in honor of George Washington.
The surname historically derived from the English place name.
Washington as a male given name is derived from the surname. It is particularly popular in the United States and South America, evoking the memory of George Washington.
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