Ball (surname)
Ball is a surname of English/German Jewish origin. First mention of the name appeared in Cheshire.
This surname has multiple potential origins, as do quite a few other short surnames:
- one origin relates to body type and arose as a nickname, originally from Middle English[1]
- likewise, another origin relates to baldness, again arising as a nickname[1]
- another purported origin is related to living near a "knoll or rounded hill"[1]
- the surname may also descend from the Old Norse personal name "Balle"[1]
- it could be a toponymic surname, related to Ball, Cornwall, England[2]
A multiplicity of origins for this surname is also supported by genetic analysis.[3]
In the United Kingdom, according to a study based on data available from Experian, the surname declined in use by 55% between 1881 and 2008, possibly though not certainly due to negative connotation elicited by the surname.[4]
List of people with the surname
Arts and music
- Alan Ball (screenwriter) (born 1957)
- Angeline Ball, actor
- Ashleigh Ball (voice actress) (born 1983), Canadian voice actor and musician
- Christopher Ball, British composer
- Dave Ball (musician) (born 1950), English guitarist
- David Ball (musician) (born 1959), English electronic musician (usually known as Dave)
- David Ball (country musician) (born 1953), American country musician
- Ed Ball (musician) (living), English singer-songwriter, musician and businessman
- Estil C. Ball, American folk musician
- Johnny Ball (born 1938), English television personality
- Kenny Ball (1930–2013), English jazz musician
- Lucille Ball (1911–1989), American comedian and actor
- Marcia Ball (born 1949), American blues singer and pianist
- Martin Ball, actor
- Michael Ball (singer) (born 1962), English actor and singer
- Roger Ball (designer), industrial designer
- Nicholas Ball (actor) (born 1946), English actor
- Samuel Ball (actor), American actor
- Sonja Ball (born 1956), Canadian voice actor
- Thomas Ball (artist) (1819–1911), American sculptor
- Walter Ball (cartoonist) (1911–1995)
- Wilfrid Ball (1853–1917), British painter
- William Ball (stage director), American stage director (1931–1991)
- Zoë Ball (born 1970), English radio and television personality
Business
- Edmund Ball (1855–1925), American entrepreneur, one of the Ball Brothers
- Edward Ball (businessman) (1888–1981), American businessman and political figure
- Ernie Ball (1930–2004), American entrepreneur, musician, and guitar innovator
- Frank Ball (1857–1943), American entrepreneur, one of the Ball Brothers
- Harvey Ball (1921–2001), American entrepreneur; earliest known designer of the Smiley
Military
- Albert Ball (1896–1917), English World War I fighter pilot; recipient of the Victoria Cross
- Alexander Ball (c. 1756 – 1809), English admiral of the Royal Navy and Governor of Malta
- Henry Lidgbird Ball (1756–1818), British Royal Navy officer who discovered and explored Lord Howe Island
- William L. Ball III, United States Secretary of the Navy
Politics, law, and diplomacy
- Bartholomew Ball (died 1573), Mayor of Dublin 1553-1554
- Edward Ball (congressman) (1811–1872), American national politician
- Gregory R. Ball (born 1977), American state politician
- John Ball (pioneer) (1794–1884), American pioneer and state politician
- Joseph H. Ball (1905–1993), American journalist and national politician
- L. Heisler Ball (1861–1932), American physician and national politician
- Mottrom D. Ball (1835–1887), American government official
- Nicholas Ball (Alderman) (died 1609), Mayor of Dublin 1582–1583
- Nicholas Ball (Irish lawyer) (died 1865), Irish barrister
- Robert James Ball, British M.P.
- Thomas Henry Ball (1859–1944), American national politician
- Thomas R. Ball (1896–1943), U.S. Representative from Connecticut
- Walter Ball (Alderman) (died 1598), Mayor of Dublin 1580-1581
- William Lee Ball, Virginia congressman
- William Macmahon Ball (1901–1986), Australian academic and diplomat
Religion
- David Standish Ball (born 1926), American Episcopal bishop
- John Ball (priest) (died 1381), English Lollard priest; prominent figure in the Peasants' Revolt
- Margaret Ball (1515–1584), beatified by the Roman Catholic Church as martyr of the faith
- Michael Ball (bishop) (born 1932), English Anglican clergyman; former Bishop of Truro
- Peter Ball (bishop) (born 1932), disgraced former Bishop of Lewes and twin brother of Michael Ball
Sciences and mathematics
- Benjamin Ball (physician) (1833–1893), English-born French psychiatrist
- Elmer Darwin Ball (1870–1943), American entomologist
- John M. Ball (born 1948), British mathematician
- John Ball (naturalist) (1818–1889), Irish politician, naturalist and Alpine traveller
- Keith Martin Ball (born 1960), English mathematician
- Leo Anton Karl de Ball (1853–1916), German-Austrian astronomer
- Loren C. Ball, American astronomer
- Mary Ball (1812–1892), Irish naturalist and entomologist
- Robert Stawell Ball (1840-1913), astronomer
- Webb C. Ball (1847–1922), American railroad engineer who established the first rules for railroad chronometers
- William Ball (astronomer) (or Balle), British astronomer; founder Fellow of the Royal Society
Sports
- Alan Ball, Jr. (1945–2007), English professional footballer and football club manager
- Alan Ball, Sr. (1924–1982), English professional footballer and football club manager
- Alan Ball (American football) (born 1985)
- Arnie Ball (born 1944), American volleyball coach
- Ashleigh Ball (field hockey) (born 1986), English field hockey player
- Bobby Ball (auto racer) (1925–1954), American racecar driver
- Carsten Ball (born 1987), Australian tennis player
- Catie Ball, American Olympic swimmer
- Dave Ball (defensive end) (born 1981), American professional football player
- David Ball (wide receiver) (born 1984), American professional football player
- Eric Ball (American football) (born 1966), American football player
- Jeff Ball (baseball), baseball player
- John Ball (golfer) (1861–1940), English amateur golfer
- John Ball (soccer) (born 1972), American professional soccer player
- Kevin Ball, soccer player
- Lloy Ball (born 1972), American volleyball player
- Lonzo Ball (born 1997), American basketball player
- Luke Ball (born 1984), Australian rules footballer
- Michael Ball (footballer) (born 1979), English professional footballer
- Montee Ball (born 1990), American professional football player
- Neal Ball, baseball player
- Reggie Ball (born 1984), American professional football player
- Rudi Ball (1910–1975), only athlete of Jewish descent to represent Germany in the 1936 Winter Olympic Games
- Sam Ball, NFL lineman
- Walter Ball (baseball player) (1877–1946), Negro League baseball player
- William Ball (footballer), English footballer (1886–1942)
Writing and education
- Catherine Ball, known as the Baroness de Calabrella (c. 1788–1856), British writer and newspaper owner
- Clifford Ball, author
- Donna Ball, writer
- Edward Ball (American author) (born 1958)
- Hugo Ball (1886–1927), German author and poet
- John Ball (American author) (1911–1988)
- John Ball (Puritan) (1585–1640), English author and educator
- Phil Ball (writer) (born 1957), British writer and educator
- Samuel Ball (educator) (1935–2009), Australian education researcher
Other
- Edward Hughes Ball (1798–1863), later Edward Hughes Ball Hughes or "The Golden Ball", British dandy
- Mary Ball Washington (1706–1789) mother of George Washington
- Ron Ball, British Police and Crime Commissioner
See also
- Ball
- Ball (disambiguation)
- Human name disambiguation pages: Alan Ball (disambiguation), David Ball (disambiguation), Phil Ball (disambiguation)
Notes
- 1 2 3 4 "Last Name: Ball", Internet Surname Database, Name Origin Research, retrieved 21 Dec 2011
- ↑ Seary, E; Kirwin, William; Lynch Sheila MP, Family Names of the Island of Newfoundland, p. 20, ISBN 9780773517820 – via Google Books
- ↑ Perkins, Steven C.; Ball, Mike (16 Jun 2006), "Ball Surname Y Chromosome DNA Study", RootsWeb, retrieved 21 Dec 2011
- ↑ Garth, John (25 March 2009), "R.I.P. Smellie, Bottom and Balls - the surnames that are dying of embarrassment", Mail Online, United Kingdom: Associated Newspapers, retrieved 22 Dec 2011
Further reading
- Ball, David G. (ed.), The New England Ball Project, retrieved 21 Dec 2011
- Roach, Cheryl Capps (2010), "Chapter 13", Searching For My Grandfathers-From the North Seas To The Oklahoma Oil Pools (Google Book), Limited Edition Publishers, retrieved 21 Dec 2011
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