Karr is a Gaelic surname derived from the Old Norse Kjarr. The surname Carr and its variants date back to the

Battle Abbey Roll The Battle Abbey Roll is a commemorative list, lost since at least the 16th century, of the companions of William the Conqueror, which had been erected or affixed as a memorial within Battle Abbey, Hastings, founded ''ex-voto'' by Duke William o ...

from 1066 after the Anglo Norman invasion of

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first House of Normandy, Norman List of English monarchs#House of Norman ...

. The surname appears in the Old Norse genealogical section of the

Flateyjarbók ''Flateyjarbók'' (; "Book of Flatey") is an important medieval Icelandic manuscript. It is also known as GkS 1005 fol. and by the Latin name ''Codex Flateyensis''. It was commissioned by Jón Hákonarson and produced by the priests and scribes ...

the largest medieval Icelandic manuscript. In

Skáldskaparmál ''Skáldskaparmál'' (Old Norse: 'The Language of Poetry'; c. 50,000 words; ; ) is the second part of the ''Prose Edda''. The section consists of a dialogue between Ægir, the divine personification of the sea, and Bragi, the god of poetry, in ...

Snorri Sturluson Snorri Sturluson ( ; ; 1179 – 22 September 1241) was an Icelandic historian, poet, and politician. He was elected twice as lawspeaker of the Icelandic parliament, the Althing. He is commonly thought to have authored or compiled portions of the ...

lists Kjarr as a descendant of Auði, the founder of the Ödling dynasty. In the

Heimskringla ''Heimskringla'' () is the best known of the Old Norse kings' sagas. It was written in Old Norse in Iceland by the poet and historian Snorre Sturlason (1178/79–1241) 1230. The name ''Heimskringla'' was first used in the 17th century, derived ...

Valland In Norse legend, Valland is the name of the part of Europe which is inhabited by Celtic and Romance peoples. The element ''Val-'' is derived from *''Walhaz'', a Proto-Germanic word whose descendants were used in various Germanic languages to refer ...

is mentioned several times as the Old Norse name for Gaul. It was the country where Rollo carved out Normandy: Kjárr, usually a king of the Valir. Kíarr/Kjárr is generally recognized to stem from Latin Caesar. Early Scandinavian links with Gothic regions suggest it also could have come from Greek kaîsar, perhaps through Gothic

Kaiser ''Kaiser'' is the German word for "emperor" (female Kaiserin). In general, the German title in principle applies to rulers anywhere in the world above the rank of king (''König''). In English, the (untranslated) word ''Kaiser'' is mainly ap ...

. The Scottish variant being Kerr and the Irish variant being Carr from the Celtic word ''ciar'' which was derived from O'Ciarain or O'Ceirin. The word car itself is an anglicized variation from the Gaulish word

carros Carros (; oc, Carròs) is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in southeastern France. Carros is one of sixteen villages grouped together by the Métropole Nice Côte d'Azur tourist department as the ''Route des Villages Perchés'' (Rout ...

; a wheeled cart or chariot.

People with the surname

Barry Karr Barry Karr is an American skeptic and paranormal researcher, currently the executive director of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry. He has been consulted by the media on the paranormal. Karr has been involved in many investigations including f ...

, executive director for Center for Inquiry *

Benn Karr Benjamin Joyce Karr (November 28, 1893 – December 8, 1968), known as Benn Karr and nicknamed Baldy Karr, was a Major League Baseball pitcher who played between 1920 and 1927 for the Boston Red Sox (1920–22) and Cleveland Indians (1925–27). ...

(1893–1968), pitcher in Major League Baseball *

Bill Karr William Morrison Karr Jr. (November 29, 1911 – October 29, 1979) was an American football end who played six seasons in the National Football League (NFL) for the Chicago Bears from 1933 to 1938. He twice led the NFL in receiving touchdowns an ...

(1911–1979), American football end *

Carmen Karr Carme Karr i Alfonsetti (Spanish, Carmen Karr; Barcelona, 16 March 1865 – 29 December 1943) was a Spanish Catalan feminist, journalist, writer, musicologist and song-composer. Karr was one of the most ardent Catalan feminists of the early 20t ...

(1865–1943), Catalan feminist, journalist, writer, and musicologist *

David Karr David Harold Karr, born David Katz (1918, Brooklyn, New York (state), New York – 7 July 1979, Paris) was a controversial Americans, American journalist, businessman, Communist and NKVD agent. Early life Enthralled with the radical left, Karr b ...

(1918–1979) *

Dean Karr Dean Karr (born February 22, 1965) is an American photographer and director. A prolific creative, Karr has photographed dozens of album covers and directed a substantial amount of music videos, commercials, and films. Early life and education ...

(born 1965), American photographer and music video, commercial, and film director *

Gary Karr Gary Michael Karr (born November 20, 1941 in Los Angeles) is an American classical double bass virtuoso and teacher; he is considered one of the best bassists of the 20th and 21st centuries. Biography Although he comes from several generations ...

(born 1942), American classical double bass player and teacher *

Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr (24 November 1808 – 29 September 1890) was a French critic, journalist, and novelist. Life Karr was born in Paris to German pianist and composer Henri Karr (1784–1842), and after being educated at the Co ...

(1808–1890), French critic, journalist and novelist * Jerry Karr (1936–2019), American farmer and politician *

John Mark Karr John is a common English name and surname: * John (given name) * John (surname) John may also refer to: New Testament Works * Gospel of John, a title often shortened to John * First Epistle of John, often shortened to 1 John * Second E ...

, former suspect in the JonBenét Ramsey murder case *

Mariana Karr María Elena Coppola González (29 November 1949 – 31 July 2016), better known as Mariana Karr, was an Argentine-Mexican actress who worked mostly in films and telenovela A telenovela is a type of a television serial drama or soap opera pr ...

(1949–2016), Argentine-Mexican actress *

Mary Karr Mary Karr (born January 16, 1955) is an American poet, essayist and memoirist from East Texas. She is widely noted for her 1995 bestselling memoir '' The Liars' Club''. Karr is the Jesse Truesdell Peck Professor of English Literature at Syracus ...

(born 1955), American poet and memoirist *

Ron Karr Ron Karr is an American speaker, marketing consultant and author based in New Jersey. He was elected President of National Speakers Association for 2013–14 and he is the President of ''Karr Associates, Inc''. Karr is a National Board Member of ...

, American speaker, marketing consultant and author

Fictional

Mike Karr Mike Karr is a fictional character on the long-running Daytime television, daytime soap opera, ''The Edge of Night''. A tireless crime-fighter, Karr was introduced as a cop finishing law school. This character evolved from the earlier Perry Mason ...

, a character in ''The Edge of Night''

References

{{Reflist Surnames Surnames of Scandinavian origin Icelandic-language surnames Surnames of Norman origin

People with the surname

Fictional

See also

References