Spears Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Spears last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Spears last name
Meaning of the Spears last name: spearman. Spears is a Scottish and English surname for a man who made or carried spears, or a nickname for someone tall and thin. The last name is strongest in western Scotland and Ulster, and Ulster-Scots emigrants carried it to Pennsylvania and the American South. A curious detail of this surname origin: Scottish records often spell it Speirs, while in America the simpler Spears won out.
Arms associated with the Spears name
Scottish heraldry favours bold figures such as lions, stars and hands, and coats of arms associated with the Spears surname follow that strong, clear style.
Get your full Spears family history
This is only a glimpse of the Spears story. The full Spears 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 Spears coat of arms. Get the full Spears report.
Spears name FAQ
What does the Spears name mean?
Spearman. Common variants include Spiers, Speirs, Spear.
Where does the Spears surname come from?
It originates in Scotland, and is also found in the United States, Northern Ireland and England.
Is there a Spears coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Spears coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: George F. Black, The Surnames of Scotland (New York Public Library, 1946); Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).