Subscribe >
Help
Member Login
Username Password (Forgot?)
Look up another surname
The harper Surname

harper Name Meaning and History

English, Scottish, and Irish: occupational name for a player on the harp, from an agent derivative of Middle English, Middle Dutch harp ‘harp’. The harper was one of the most important figures of a medieval baronial hall, especially in Scotland and northern England, and the office of harper was sometimes hereditary. The Scottish surname is probably an Anglicized form of Gaelic Mac Chruiteir ‘son of the harper’ (from Gaelic cruit ‘harp’, ‘stringed instrument’). This surname has long been present in Ireland.

Dictionary of American Family Names, Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-508137-4
Learn the meaning and history of your first name
Share this page with friends and family

The harper name in History

A unique volume of fascinating facts, statistics and commentary following the harper family name as far back in history as possible.

harper Family Facts

Are you a Facebook user? Add harper family facts to your Facebook profile.
Distribution of harper Families in the US in 1920
Number of harper families
 634-1265
 212-633		 1-211
 0
Compiled by Ancestry.com from the 1920 US Federal Census records

Click on a state to view harper census records

Year

How is this helpful?

  • You can decide where (in which states) to start searching for harper records.
  • You can see how harper families moved over time by selecting different Census years.

What do I do next?

The information for this map came from Ancestry.com’s US Federal Census Collection.
  • Census records can tell you little-known facts about your ancestors such as birthplace, residence and occupation.
  • Click here to search harper census records.

More resources for your harper family history

Start your FREE family tree. We'll start searching.

Enter a few simple facts about your family. We'll use what you enter to try and find more.

Begin your family tree with your name:


Member Connections

More Tools and Resources