Editing Surname (section)

===Occupational surnames {{anchor|Occupational}}=== <!-- [[Technonym]], [[Occupational name]] and [[Occupational surname]] redirect here -->
{{Category see also|Occupational surnames}}
[[Vocation|Occupational]] names include ''[[Smith (surname)|Smith]]'', ''[[Miller (name)|Miller]]'', ''[[Farmer (surname)|Farmer]]'', ''[[Thatcher (disambiguation)#Surname|Thatcher]]'', ''[[Shepherd (surname)|Shepherd]]'', ''[[Potter (surname)|Potter]]'', and so on, and analogous names in many other languages; see, for example, [[template:Smith-surname|various surnames associated with the occupation of smith]]. There are also more complicated names based on occupational titles. In England it was common for servants to take a modified version of their employer's occupation or first name as their last name,{{cn|date=July 2018}} adding the letter ''s'' to the word, although this formation could also be a [[patronymic]]. For instance, the surname ''[[Vickers (surname)|Vickers]]'' is thought to have arisen as an occupational name adopted by the servant of a vicar,<ref name="reaney">Reaney, P.H., and Wilson, R.M. ''A Dictionary of English Surnames.'' Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1997. Rev. 3rd ed. {{ISBN|0-19-860092-5}}.</ref> while ''[[Roberts (surname)|Roberts]]'' could have been adopted by either the son or the servant of a man named Robert. A subset of occupational names in English are names thought to be derived from the medieval [[Mystery play#English mystery plays|mystery plays]]. The participants would often play the same roles for life, passing the part down to their oldest sons. Names derived from this may include ''[[King (surname)|King]]'', ''[[Lord (surname)|Lord]]'' and ''Virgin''.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}} ''A Dictionary of English Surnames'' says that "surnames of office, such as [[Abbot (surname)|Abbot]], [[Bishop (surname)|Bishop]], [[Cardinal (surname)|Cardinal]] and King, are often nicknames".<ref name="reaney"/> The original meaning of names based on medieval occupations may no longer be obvious in modern English.{{citation needed|date=October 2022}}