Barker Surname Meaning & Origin
What the Barker last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.
Order your pack and our heraldry team researches and paints the Barker coat of arms for you.
Meaning and origin of the Barker last name
Meaning of the Barker last name: tanner, or shepherd. Barker was a name for a tanner, who used bark to treat leather, or for a shepherd. It is common in England. A curious detail: tanning was smelly work, so tanners often lived on the edge of towns.
Arms associated with the Barker name
In England, gold stood for generosity and silver for peace, and the Barker name belongs to that old language of colour.
Get your full Barker family history
This is only a glimpse of the Barker story. The full Barker 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 Barker coat of arms. Get the full Barker report.
Barker name FAQ
What does the Barker name mean?
Tanner, or shepherd. Common variants include Barkar, Berker, Tanner.
Where does the Barker surname come from?
It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Australia and Canada.
Is there a Barker coat of arms?
Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Barker coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.
Researched by Herald Lab Research Studio, since 1993. Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford); US Census Bureau 2010.