Parent’s name

Henry surname meaning

A surname from the personal name Henry, with Irish Mac Éinrí and Anglo-Norman Fitzhenry patronymic routes.

Confidence: Likely
US frequency: Rank 153 · 166,610 people
Common variants: Henri, Henrie, Fitzhenry, Mac Éinrí

Confidence: Likely. The main story is well supported; some details of the deeper root are less certain.

The short story

Henry is a surname formed from the widely used personal name Henry. That name comes from Germanic elements traditionally glossed as “home” and “power” or “ruler,” but the surname-level meaning is the inherited personal name rather than a literal household title. Irish families may use Henry as an anglicization of Mac Éinrí, “son of Henry,” and Anglo-Norman Fitzhenry gives a parallel relationship formula. Henri, Henrie, and Fitzhenry appear in related records without proving one line. Parent’s name is the best catalog type. Likely confidence reflects the secure personal-name basis and the several regional ways the surname developed.

Also seen as: Henri, Henrie, Fitzhenry, Mac Éinrí

Sources used

Ancestry surname meaning for Henry citing DAFN 2022 (personal-name and Irish patronymic routes)
Library Ireland entry for Mac Éinrí (son of Henry)
Names2020_LastNames_RaceHispanic_Top1000.xlsx (2020 Census)