Gagnon Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Gagnon last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
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Meaning and origin of the Gagnon last name
Meaning of the Gagnon last name: guard dog. Gagnon is a French surname, most likely from an old western French word for a guard dog, a nickname for a fierce person. Three Gagnon brothers from the Perche region settled near Quebec in the 1640s. Curiously, it is now one of the most common last names in Quebec, far more common there than in France.
Arms associated with the Gagnon name
Coats of arms associated with the Gagnon surname follow French heraldry, each set out in a short blazon.
Get your full Gagnon family history
This is only a glimpse of the Gagnon story. The full Gagnon history report goes much deeper into where the name began, who carried it and how the family spread, and it comes with a museum-style painted Gagnon coat of arms. Get the full Gagnon report.
Gagnon name FAQ
What does the Gagnon name mean?
Guard dog. Common variants include Gagné.
Where does the Gagnon surname come from?
It originates in France, and is also found in Canada and the United States.
Is there a Gagnon coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Gagnon coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Sources: Albert Dauzat, Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de famille et prénoms de France (Larousse); Marie-Thérèse Morlet, Dictionnaire étymologique des noms de famille (Perrin, 1991); Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).