Wood

Wood, also spelled Wode, Woode, Woodde, or Wad is a surname that is common throughout the world, especially countries with historical links to Britain.

In England, Wales and the Isle of Man it is the 26^th most-common surname^[1], in Scotland it is the 53^rd most-common surname^[2] and in the United States the 78^th[3].

History

The most common explanation of the origin of the surname Wood is that it was used to describe a person who lived in or worked in a wood or forest. This name derived from Middle English "wode" from the Old English "wudu", both of which mean "wood."

Another possibility is that the name derived from the Old English "wod" or "wad", meaning "crazed" or "crazy," and was used to describe someone considered mad or violent, or a warrior or savage in battle. An example of the use of this term is in the pun in Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, "And heere am I, and wod within this wood."

A final possibility is that it derived from an ancient Scottish surname, originally known as 'de Bosco', because the family bore trees in their coat of arms.^[4] The ancient motto of this family is "Defend."

Wood can be traced as far back as the 11th century. Walter de la Wode is recorded in Hertfordshire in 1242. John Atewode is in the Rotuli Hundredorum in Essex in 1274, and William Bythewode is listed in the Subsidy Rolls in Sussex in 1296.

Some bearers of the surname Wood may descend from Irish immigrants who moved to England and Wales. Settlers with the surnames Coll, Coill or O'Coill (Ó Coill) or the anglicised form Quill were known to have changed their surnames to the English translation - Wood.

See also

• Clan Wood
• Quill (surname)
• Woods (surname)

References

External links

• The Samuel Wood Lineage of Sussex, England