Meaning & History
Dickerson is an English surnames that means "son of Dick". It follows the common patronymic pattern of adding the suffix "-son" to a given name, in this case the medieval diminutive of Richard.
The name Richard derives from Old Germanic elements rih ("ruler, king") and hart ("hard, firm, brave"), meaning "brave ruler." It was introduced to England by the Normans after the Conquest of 1066 and quickly became one of the most popular names, spawning a multitude of nicknames and diminutives. By the late Middle Ages, Rick, Rich, Dick, and Hick were all common short forms, leading to surnames such as Dick, Dixon ("son of Dick"), Dickson, Hicks (from Hick), and Pritchard (from Richard).
The specific phonological change from Richard to Dick (with /d/ rather than /r/) is attributed to the difficulty English speakers had with the Norman French trilled r. That alternate diminutive became established, giving rise to surnames like Dickerson. The surname is most common in the United States and England, and also appears as a place name in Maryland.
Related Names
Sources: Wiktionary — Dickerson