Robert York

(male) One of the many French names of Germanic origin that were introduced into Britain by the Normans; it has since remained in continuous use. It is derived from the nearly synonymous elements hrōd ‘fame’ + berht ‘bright, famous’, and had a native Old English predecessor of similar form (Hreodbeorht), which was supplanted by the Norman name. Two dukes of Normandy in the 11th century bore the name: the father of William the Conqueror (sometimes identified with the legendary Robert the Devil), and his eldest son. It was borne also by three kings of Scotland, notably Robert the Bruce (1274–1329), who freed Scotland from English domination. The altered short form Bob is very common, but Hob and Dob, which were common in the Middle Ages and gave rise to surnames, are extinct. See also Rupert.

English: habitational name from the city of York in northern England, or perhaps in some cases a regional name from the county of Yorkshire. The surname is now widespread throughout England. Originally, the city bore the British name Eburacum, which probably meant ‘yewtree place’. This was altered by folk etymology into Old English Eoforwīc (from the elements eofor ‘wild boar’ + wīc ‘outlying settlement’). This name was taken over by Scandinavian settlers in the area, who altered it back to opacity in the form Iorvík and eventually Iork, in which form it finally settled by the 13th century. The surname has also been adopted by Jews as an Americanized form of various like-sounding Jewish surnames.