Surname
The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary · Walter A. Shumaker and George Foster Longsdorf; ed. James C. Cahill · 1922
The Cyclopedic Law Dictionary
A name which is added to the Christian name. In modem times, these have become family names. The family name is that which is continued from parent to child.
149 Iowa 672; 31 L. R. A. (N. S.) 1112.
They are called "surnames," because originally they were written over (_sur) the name in judicial writings and contracts. They were and are still used for the purpose of distinguishing persons of the same name. They were taken from something attached to the persons assuming them; as, John Carpenter, Joseph Black, Samuel Little, etc.
See Name.