Frequency: (265)
(number of times this surname appears in a sample database of 88.7 million names, representing one third of the 1997 US population)
South German and Austrian: from Middle High German vaschanc ‘Shrovetide carnival’, possibly a nickname for an exuberant, high-spirited person or for someone born between the end of Christmas and the start of Lent.
See the Key to the Dictionary or consult the General Introduction for further explanation.
