The surname Cannon is of English origin. It was a nickname from Middle English ‘canun’, canon, a clergyman living with others in a clergy house ( derived from the Old Norman-French ‘canonie’, ‘canoine’, from the Late Latin ‘canonicus’, a derivative of ‘canon’, rule, discipline, from the Greek ‘kanon’, rule, measure ). Canon, a church dignitary, Archdeacon, Bishop, Priest, Deacon, an official title. Most early bearers of the name were serfs who perhaps gained the name from a certain dignity of bearing, or as the result of a now irrecoverable anecdote. The Irish have used the name as an anglicization of the Gaelic name O’Canain, ‘descendant of Canan’, a personal name derived from ‘cana’, wolf-cub. It is also an anglicization of the Gaelic name Mac Canannain, ‘son of Canannan’, a personal name of uncertain origin, most likely a double diminutive of ‘cana’. This name dates back to the twelfth century were a Canan is recorded in historical archives. The name was brought to America by…
Coat of arms: Gules on a bend argent do…