Brooke

Brooke is widely regarded as a female personal name today, but at one point in time it was used on both genders. It originated as the transferred use of a surname from the Olde English “bróc” referring to a brook or stream. The surname would have been assigned to people who dwelled near a brook or stream as a means of identification (surnames were either derived from place names, topographical features, names passed from the father, occupations and nicknames). In this case, the surname likely developed from a topographical feature of the landscape (which included a flowing stream of water). Some etymologists have theorized that Brooke may have also developed as an occupation surname from the Medieval Norman-French “broc” meaning “pitcher” (in describing one who delivered fresh water from a jug of some sort). Such an occupation would have been held by a woman, in which case Brooke would be considered one of the few matronymic surnames (i.e., passed from the mother rather than the father). The first recorded spelling of this surname appeared in Essex in the early 12th century and was rendered as “Broc”. Aside from “brook” being a “stream”, it is also a verb meaning “to endure, tolerate”, originally derived from the more favorable Proto-Indo-European root *bhrūg- meaning “to make use of, enjoy” (Pok. 173), in the sense of eating and digesting food. The verb’s modern meaning of “tolerance” came from “to stomach something” in the late 16th century. As a female given name, Brooke is quite popular throughout the English-speaking world. It’s ranked highest in Scotland and Northern Ireland, followed by England, Ireland, Canada and the United States.