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Surname Etymology and Meaning of CADE

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Name meanings and etymologies are often disputed. The information here is compiled from freely available sources, and no claims whatsoever are made for accuracy, either historical or etymological.

An old word for a barrel or cask; probably taken from a sign at an ale-house or tavern--"John at the Cade." Shakspeare uses Cade in this sense: "Cade.--We, John Cade, so termed of our supposed father. Dick.--Or rather of stcaling a cade of herrings!" Hen. VI., Act IV., Sc. II.

Source: An Etymological Dictionary of Family and Christian Names With an Essay on their Derivation and Import (1857).

1. English: from a Middle English personal name, Cade, a survival of the Old English personal name or byname Cada, which is probably from a Germanic root meaning ‘lump’, ‘swelling’.
2. English: metonymic occupational name for a cooper, from Middle English, Old French cade ‘cask’, ‘barrel’ (of Germanic origin, probably akin to the root mentioned in 1).
3. English: nickname for a gentle or inoffensive person, from Middle English cade ‘domestic animal’, ‘pet’ (of unknown origin).
4. French (Cadé): topographic name from cade ‘juniper’ (from Latin catanus).

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names (2003)