Abraham (surname)

Abraham is a surname. It can be of Jewish, English, French, German, Dutch, Irish, Welsh, Cornish, Breton, Lebanese, Syrian and other origins. It is derived from the Hebrew personal name Avraham, borne by the biblical patriarch Abraham, revered by Jews as a founding father of the Jewish people (Gen. 11-25), and by Muslims as founder of all Semitic peoples (see Abraham).[1] The name is explained in Genesis 17:5 as being derived from the Hebrew av hamon goyim "father of a multitude of nations". It was commonly used as a given name among Christians in the Middle Ages, and has always been a popular Jewish given name.[2] The English name Abram is often a short form of Abraham, but it can also be a shortened version of Adburgham, which comes from a place name.[3] As an Irish name, it was adopted as an approximation (in sound, not meaning) of the Gaelic name Mac an Bhreitheamhan "son of the judge".[4] The German name Brahm is often a short form of Abraham, but it can also be a topographic name signifying someone who lived near a bramble thicket (from the Middle High German brāme).[5] The name Braham has been used as an Anglicization of both Abraham and its patronymic Abrahams by Ashkenazi Jews in the British Isles (see Braham). Abraham has also been used as an Anglicization of the equivalent Arabic surname Ibrāhīm (see Ibrahim). It is also found as a given name among Christians in India, and has come to be used as a family name among families from Kerala.[6]

List of people with the surname

Notable people with the surname include:

See also

References

  1. ^ Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names, page 4
  2. ^ Hanks & Hodges, Oxford Dictionary of Names, page 2
  3. ^ Hanks & Hodges, Oxford Dictionary of Names, page 4
  4. ^ Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names, page 4
  5. ^ Hanks & Hodges, Oxford Dictionary of Names, page 71
  6. ^ Hanks, Dictionary of American Family Names, page 4

Bibliography

  • Hanks, Patrick, Dictionary of American Family Names (2003), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
  • Hanks, Patrick and Flavia Hodges, Oxford Dictionary of Names, (1988), Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-211592-8