Lake Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Lake last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
Order your pack and our heraldry team researches and paints the Lake coat of arms for you.
Meaning and origin of the Lake last name
Meaning of the Lake last name: stream dweller. Lake is an English surname for someone who lived by a stream, from Old English lacu, "stream", rather than a lake in today's sense, or by a pool. It may also come from Lake in Wiltshire. The last name is found mainly in southern and eastern England. A curious detail of this surname origin: the old word for a small stream survives in field names, so a Lake family often lived by running water.
Arms associated with the Lake name
Animals on English shields stood for the qualities admired in them, such as the lion for courage, and that heraldic language shapes coats of arms associated with the Lake surname.
Get your full Lake family history
This is only a glimpse of the Lake story. The full Lake history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Lake coat of arms. Get the full Lake report.
Lake name FAQ
What does the Lake name mean?
Stream dweller.
Where does the Lake surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Australia and Canada.
Is there a Lake coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Lake coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).