Thorburn

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A Scottish family name of Norse-derived origin, carried by a number of notable people across history and the arts
2. A surname of Scottish origin, used as the family name of several individuals, including a well-known early twentieth-century painter of birds
3. The name of a Scottish family, found among various British figures in the arts, sport and public life

Etymology: Thorburn is a surname whose first element is the name of a Norse god. It descends from a Northern Middle English personal name, Thorbern or Thurbern, which came from the Old Norse "Þórbjǫrn." That name joins "Þórr," the thunder god Thor, with "bjǫrn," meaning "bear." A name built on the god of thunder and the bear was a common style of Norse personal name, and the same pairing of divine and animal elements appears in many other Scandinavian names of the period. The name traveled from Scandinavian settlers in northern England into the Scottish Borders and beyond, where it was carried on as a family name. Its spelling shifted over the centuries, which is why the older forms Thorbern and Thurbern survive mainly in records rather than in modern use.