Haldane

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A Scottish family surname carried by several notable people, including a well-known twentieth-century British geneticist
2. A surname of Scottish origin shared by several prominent figures in British science and public life
3. The name of a Scottish family whose members include influential scientists and politicians of the modern era

Etymology: Behind this Scottish surname lies a Viking-age personal name, Old Norse "Halfdanr." Its two parts are "halfr," meaning "half," and "Danr," meaning "Dane," so the name most plausibly means something like "half-Dane." Norse names of this type were ordinary given names, and the one that survived in Scotland became a family name passed down through generations. Of the two elements, "Danr" is the one that carries the older story, since the Danes gave their name to a people and a kingdom. "Halfr" is an ordinary Old Norse adjective, so the combination needed no special circumstance to form. As a surname, it is simply the Scottish form of that inherited name.