Fun Facts About the Name Fenner
- 41 babies named Fenner: U.S. records list 41 babies given the name Fenner from 1880 through 2025.
What Does the Name Fenner Mean?
Fenner is an English surname meaning "dweller in a fen" or "dweller by a marsh." It comes from Middle English fen, "fen, marsh," inherited from Old English fenn, with the suffix -er denoting a person associated with such a place. The same word survives in the name of the Fens, the marshy lowlands of eastern England.
A secondary explanation treats some occurrences of Fenner as a variant of Fanner, an occupational name for a winnower of grain. The fen-derived sense is the usual explanation for the English surname, but individual families may have different origins.
Fenner Name History & Origins
Fenner belongs to the English class of topographic surnames, which identified people by the landscape where they lived. The Middle English byname Fenner was formed with the common suffix -er, and in the later Middle Ages, as hereditary surnames became fixed, descriptive bynames of this kind became family names. The surname is recorded in medieval England and is also established in Ireland.
As a first name, Fenner is a transferred use of the surname and shares its derivation. The British politician Archibald Fenner Brockway (1888 - 1988) is a documented example of Fenner used as a middle name, and the Elizabethan Puritan clergyman Dudley Fenner (c. 1558 - 1587) was an earlier bearer of the surname.
How Popular is the Name Fenner?
Fenner has historically been an exceptionally rare given name in the United States, remaining well outside the national mainstream. It saw its highest recorded annual births in 1915. Its best rank was #3,431 in 1914.
U.S. name popularity from 1880-2025, based on SSA data. Rank shows how the name compares with other names - lower numbers mean greater popularity. Births shows how many babies received the name each year.
| Year | Rank | Births | % |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2012 | #12,865 | 5 | 0.0003% |
| 1960 | #4,230 | 5 | 0.0002% |
| 1932 | #3,951 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1929 | #4,175 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1927 | #4,404 | 5 | 0.0004% |
| 1918 | #4,385 | 5 | 0.0005% |
| 1915 | #3,552 | 6 | 0.0007% |
| 1914 | #3,431 | 5 | 0.0008% |
Name popularity over more than a century, based on Social Security Administration data. Gaps in the chart indicate years when the name does not appear in the published records.
Most Popular Boy Names That Start with F
How the Name Fenner Shapes Your Personality and Life?
You are kind, home-loving, hospitable and friendly. Since you take responsibility well, you are a good organizer of social affairs. Compassion for others is an outstanding trait. You are a great lover and a great flirt – an artist, musician, actor, teacher, nurse. Your character can be contradictory. You are practical, yet idealistic and intuitive; capable of selfless devotion to someone you love, yet look to receive payback. You have an eventful, exciting life. You are versatile and have the ability to learn easily.
Position and social status is very important for you and you are always looking for way to improve your position in society. You have power and ability to chose your own destiny and achieve anything you want in life. You can expand in any direction according to your will and the set of values. You have passion for justice and belong to the position of authority. You have an inherent courage and endurance to accomplish "The Impossible Dream". With the power comes responsibility. You hold keys to the material world, but with this gift comes high spiritual responsibility to be fair and true to others. You are philosophical and mature, determined and intense with a desire to endure, often religious.
✦ Fenner's Deeper Meaning & Tips for Parents Discover Fenner's symbolic numbers and practical tips for choosing a name that complements your child's birth date.