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Crisp Surname Meaning & Origin

What the Crisp last name means, where the surname began and how it spread.

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Meaning and origin of the Crisp last name

Meaning of the Crisp last name: curly-haired. Crisp is an English surname from Old English crisp, "curly", a nickname for someone with curly hair. It is found in East Anglia and London. The writer Quentin Crisp, author of The Naked Civil Servant, made this last name known, and it is also common in America.

Arms associated with the Crisp name

In English heraldry, coats of arms associated with the Crisp name are described in a blazon, a short formal text.

Get your full Crisp family history

This is only a glimpse of the Crisp story. The full Crisp 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 Crisp coat of arms. Get the full Crisp report.

Crisp name FAQ

What does the Crisp name mean?

Curly-haired. Common variants include Crispe, Crisps.

Where does the Crisp surname come from?

It originates in England, and is also found in the United States, Canada and Australia.

Is there a Crisp coat of arms?

Arms were granted to individuals rather than to everyone with a surname. Herald Lab paints a personalized Crisp coat of arms in museum style, based on historic heraldry.

Sources: Reaney & Wilson, Dictionary of English Surnames; Dictionary of American Family Names (Oxford).