Sheppard Name Origin, Meaning and Family History

Sheppard Name Meaning: An English/Scottish name thought to have originated from the words 'sceap' and 'hierde' meaning 'herd men' or 'guard'.

An occupational name for a herdsman, someone that was associated with the looking after/guarding of sheep.

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Surname Distribution

Census frequency by county

Name Concentrations Within England and Wales

Sheppard Surname Statistics


Top Professions for the Sheppard family

Profession Census Frequency
Scholar 1,865
Agricultural Labourer 187
General Labourer 125
Domestic Servant 111
Laundress 91
Coal Miner 90
Dress Maker 88
Labourer 88
General Servant 82
Farm Labourer 70
Carpenter 61
Annuitant 60
Blacksmith 33
Tailor 31
Servant 30
Gardener 29
No Occupation 26
General Servant Domestic 25
Charwoman 24
Grocer 22
Shoe Maker 22
Cotton Weaver 22
Painter 21
Baker 19
Draper Assistant 19

Sheppard Surname Variants Ranking

Rank Surname Match Census Frequency
1 Shepherd 75% 135,807
2 Sheppard 100% 68,947
3 Shepperd 88% 14,067
4 Shepard 88% 7,664
5 Sheperd 75% 1,913
6 Sheppherd 78% 1,277
7 Shippard 88% 1,270
8 Sheppeard 89% 393
9 Shappard 88% 390
10 Shipperd 75% 187
11 Sheppered 78% 102

Did you know?

The surname Sheppard is the 2nd most popular variant of Shepherd.

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