Explore the Family Name Whitebread

The meaning of Whitebread

1. English (Kent and Middlesex): from Middle English whit bred (Old English hwīt brēad ‘white bread’), probably denoting a baker or seller of white bread. White bread, considered the best bread, was made from wheat flour. The name may also derive from Middle English whete bred ‘wheat bread’ (Old English hwǣte brēad), denoting a baker or seller of bread made from wheat. The terms ‘white bread’ and ‘wheat bread’, though of different origin but with identical reference, fell together. Alternatively, the surname may also derive from a metathesized form of Whitberd, from Middle English whīt ‘white’ + berd ‘beard’ (Old English hwīt + beard), a nickname for someone with a white beard. 2. In some instances, perhaps an Americanized form (translation into English) of the German cognate Weisbrot.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.