Provides a running account of the origin of the most common American family names, with special attention to the social conditions and customs surrounding the adoption of surnames in England and in Europe in general. Names are treated in four main groups: patronymics, occupational names, nicknames, and place names. Also includes a list of 2,000 most common surnames in the U.S. "Since American families come from almost every spot on the globe, American family names are rich in variety ... Usually each derivation may be stated in a few lines, but the whole book occupies over 600 pages. There are literally thousands and thousands of names given. To many of the main entries are added variant forms. They hail from Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America, and a few from Africa, though most of the early entrants to the New World from Africa lost their original names and took "American" names"--Jacket.