Sawyer Name Origin, Meaning and Family History

Sawyer Name Meaning: An occupational name for someone who is employed to 'saw' wood. Middle English 'saghier' a derivative of 'sagh(en)' meaning 'to saw'.

The process of preparing 'sawn timber' was an absolute necessity during medieval life,without it life would have been impossible.

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Surname Distribution

Census frequency by county

Name Concentrations Within England and Wales

Sawyer Surname Statistics


Top Professions for the Sawyer family

Profession Census Frequency
Scholar 1,096
Agricultural Labourer 160
Labourer 66
Laundress 59
Dress Maker 54
Domestic Servant 51
General Labourer 50
General Servant 49
Farm Labourer 39
General Servant Domestic 31
Annuitant 28
Coal Miner 21
Carpenter 18
Charwoman 18
Gardener 18
House Keeper 15
Bricklayer 14
Cook 14
No Occupation 14
General Domestic Servant 12
Painter 12
Servant 12
Nailer 12
Grocer 11
Servant Domestic 11

Sawyer Surname Variants Ranking

Rank Surname Match Census Frequency
1 Sawyer 100% 41,332
2 Swyer 83% 1,575
3 Swayer 67% 184
4 Sawayer 86% 143

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The surname Sawyer is the most popular version of all its varients

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