William Family History
William Name Meaning
English (of Norman origin): from the Middle English personal name William, Willam, Willem, an Old Picard and Norman French form of ancient Germanic Willihelm, composed of the elements wil- ‘will, desire’ + helm- ‘helmet, protection’. This Norman personal name became widely used in England, Scotland and Wales after the Conquest, mainly no doubt in honor of the Conqueror himself. By the 13th century it had already become the most popular personal name in England. A Parisian form of the name Guillaume was also sometimes used (see Gillam ), which in medieval Wales was adopted as Gwilym (see Gwilliam ).
Americanized form (translation into English) of French Guillaume .
Similar surnames:
Dictionary of American Family Names © Patrick Hanks 2003, 2006.
William is most likely found in:
Wales
44,933 people in Family Tree
United States
21,305 people in Family Tree
England
7,616 people in Family Tree
We found 33,691,417 records for the William last name
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