Ward (surname) Ward (surname) Ward is a popular Old English origin and Old Gaelic origin surname dating to before the Norman conquest of 1066 and Ireland, common in English-speaking countries. The Old English name derives from an occupational surname for a civil guard/keeper of the watch, or alternately as a topographical surname from the word "werd" ("marsh"). The Old Gaelic surname derives from "Mac an Bhaird" ("son of the Bard"), a bard being a storyteller or poet. The two names are completely unrelated ethnically one being Germanic and the other Celtic. The oldest public record of the surname dates to 1176. In
Smith (surname) England the surname Goff, which is common in East Anglia, is derived from the Breton and Cornish "goff" a cognate of the Gaelic "gobha". This particular surname was brought to England by migrant Bretons, following the Norman Conquest of England. Smith (surname) Smith is a surname originating in England. It is the most prevalent surname in the United Kingdom, Australia, New Zealand and the United States, the second most common surname in Canada, and the fifth most common surname in the Republic of Ireland. The surname Smith is particularly prevalent among those of English, Scottish and Irish descent, but is