Stenhouse

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A Scottish family name of place-based origin, carried by a number of people over the centuries
2. A surname of Scottish origin that belongs to many individuals in Britain and beyond
3. A family name found mainly in Scotland, traditionally linked with a specific place name

Etymology: Stenhouse is a Scottish family name formed by joining two plain English words: "stone" and "house." Its origin lies in the naming habits of medieval Scotland, when people were often identified by the place or dwelling they lived at or came from. A house built of stone, rather than the timber or turf that was common for ordinary dwellings, would have been a distinctive landmark, and a family associated with such a building could easily take its name from it. The same construction appears in the English surname and place name Stonehouse, found in several parts of England and Scotland. Stenhouse keeps a more Scots-flavoured spelling, a variant that reflects how the vowel in "stone" was pronounced and written in Scottish usage.