Parsons is an English surname although it's known to go back several centuries in Southern Ireland (Catholic) as well. The name has an occupational meaning, and refers to a

parson A parson is an ordained Christian person responsible for a small area, typically a parish. The term was formerly often used for some Anglican clergy and, more rarely, for ordained ministers in some other churches. It is no longer a formal term d ...

's servant or a person who worked in the parson's house. Another meaning of the surname is ''the parson's son''. Notable people with the surname of Parsons include the following.

Academia and science

* Charles Algernon Parsons (1854–1931), Irish engineer, inventor of the steam turbine * Charles Parsons (philosopher) (born 1943), American philosopher * Coleman Parsons (1905–1991), American professor of literature *

Elsie Clews Parsons Elsie Worthington Clews Parsons (November 27, 1875 – December 19, 1941) was an American anthropologist, sociologist, folklorist, and feminist who studied Native American tribes—such as the Tewa and Hopi—in Arizona, New Mexico, and Mexi ...

(1875–1941), American anthropologist, sociologist, folklorist, and feminist * Frederick Gymer Parsons (1863–1943), English writer and scientist *

John Herbert Parsons Sir John Herbert Parsons CBE FRS FRCS (3 September 1863, Bristol – 7 October 1957, University College Hospital, London) was a British ophthalmologist and ophthalmic surgeon. Education Parsons was educated at the University of Bristol, Unive ...

(1863–1957), British ophthalmologist *

Peter J. Parsons Peter John Parsons, (24 September 1936 – 16 November 2022) was a British classicist and academic specialising in papyrology. He was Regius Professor of Greek at the University of Oxford from 1989 to 2003. Early life and education Parsons w ...

(1936 - 2022), British classicist and papyrologist * Talcott Parsons (1902–1979), American sociologist best known for his social action theory and structural functionalism * Terence Parsons (born 1939), American philosopher * Theophilus Parsons (1749–1813), American jurist *

Torrence Parsons Torrence Douglas Parsons (1941–1987) was an American mathematician. He worked mainly in graph theory, and is known for introducing a graph-theoretic view of pursuit–evasion problems (Parsons 1976, 1978). He obtained his Ph.D. from Princeto ...

(1941–1987), American mathematician

Art

* Alfred William Parsons (1847-1920), English illustrator, landscape painter, garden designer * Allyson Parsons (born 1965), Australian landscape artist *

Beatrice Emma Parsons Beatrice Emma Parsons (1870–1955) was a British painter and is best known for her watercolours of garden subjects. Parsons, along with George Samuel Elgood and Ernest Arthur Rowe, is considered one of the leading English painters of gardens. ...

(1870-1955), English garden painter * Betty Parsons (1900–1982), American artist and art dealer * Elizabeth Parsons (1831–1897), English-Australian artist *

Eunice Parsons Eunice Lulu Parsons (born August 4, 1916), also known as Eunice Jensen Parsons, is an American modernist artist known for her collages. Parsons was born in Loma, Colorado and currently lives in Portland, Oregon. She studied at the School of the ...

(born 1916), American modernist collage artist and art teacher. *

Peter Parsons Peter John Parsons, (24 September 1936 – 16 November 2022) was a British classicist and academic specialising in papyrology. He was Regius Professor of Greek at the University of Oxford from 1989 to 2003. Early life and education Parsons w ...

(born 1936), ceramic artist

Performing arts

Agnes Parsons Agnes Parsons (born Jenny Parsons) was an American screenwriter active during Hollywood's silent era. She also taught and wrote about writing after she stopped writing for the silver screen. Biography Agnes was born in Burlington, Iowa, to Wi ...

, American screenwriter * Andy Parsons (born 1966), English comedian *

Austin Parsons (American actor) Austin Edward Werring Parsons (born 9 January 1949, Glasgow) is a Scottish-born former cricketer who played for Auckland Auckland (pronounced ) ( mi, Tāmaki Makaurau) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. The ...

(born 1992), American actor *

Charlie Parsons Charles Andrew Parsons is a British television producer known as the creator of the ''Survivor (franchise), Survivor'' franchise. He also created ''The Big Breakfast'' and ''The Word (TV series), The Word''. Education Parsons was educated at Ton ...

(born 1958), British television producer * Christopher Parsons (1932–2002), English filmmaker and producer *

Estelle Parsons Estelle Margaret Parsons (born November 20, 1927) is an American actress, singer and stage director. After studying law, Parsons became a singer before deciding to pursue a career in acting. She worked for the television program ''Today'' and ...

(born 1927), Academy Award winning actress * Jim Parsons (born 1973), American television and film actor *

Karyn Parsons Karyn Parsons Rockwell (born October 8, 1966) is an American actress, author and comedian. She is best known for her role as Hilary Banks on the NBC sitcom ''The Fresh Prince of Bel-Air'' from 1990 to 1996. Parsons also starred in the 1995 film ' ...

(born 1966), American film and television actress *

Nancy Parsons Nancy Anne Parsons (January 17, 1942 – January 5, 2001) was an American actress. Early years Parsons grew up in Lake Minnetonka, Minnesota and was a member of the Class of 1960 at Minnetonka High School. Career Parsons resumed acting ...

(1942–2001), American actress * Nicholas Parsons (1923–2020), English actor and radio and television presenter *

Percy Parsons Edward Percy Parsons (1878–1944) was an American actor and singer who worked largely in the British film industry. Selected filmography * ''Suspense (1930 film), Suspense'' (1930) * ''Beyond the Cities'' (1930) * ''Creeping Shadows'' (1931) * ' ...

(1878–1944), American actor *

Philip Parsons The Australasian Association for Theatre, Drama and Performance Studies (ADSA), formerly the Australian Drama Studies Association, is an academic association promoting the study of theatre in New Zealand and Australia. History The Australian ...

, Australian drama academic and publisher * Rodger Parsons, American voice actor

Military and diplomacy

Alfred Parsons (diplomat) Alfred Roy Parsons (24 May 1925 – 19 June 2010) was an Australian diplomat from 1947 to 1988. He was the Australian High Commissioner to the United Kingdom from 1983 to 1987, only the second career diplomat to hold the position. Parsons wa ...

(1925–2010), Australian diplomat *

Francis Newton Parsons Francis Newton Parsons VC (23 March 1875 in Dover – 10 March 1900) was educated at Dover College, joined the Essex Regiment and served in the Second Boer War. He was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most presti ...

, British soldier, awarded the Victoria Cross * Harold Parsons (1863–1925), British Army officer, for whom Parsons Barracks named *

Isaac Parsons (American military officer) Isaac Parsons (January 7, 1814 – April 24, 1862) was an American planter, politician, and military officer in the U.S. state of Virginia (now West Virginia). Parsons served as a Justice of the Peace of Hampshire County's District 3 from 18 ...

(1814–1862), Virginia military officer and Virginia House Delegate *

Mosby Parsons Brigadier general, Brigadier-General Mosby Monroe Parsons (May 21, 1822 – August 15, 1865) was a senior Officer (armed forces), officer of the Confederate States Army who commanded infantry in the Trans-Mississippi Theater of the American Civ ...

(1822–1865), U.S. officer in the Mexican–American War

Music

* Alan Parsons (born 1948), British musician and record producer * Dave Parsons (born 1966), English bass guitarist *

Gary Parsons Gary Parsons is the former chairman of the board for Sirius XM Radio. Parsons was also formerly on the board of WorldSpace. Parsons was with MCI Communications Corporation, where he served in a variety of roles from 1990 to 1996. He served as cha ...

, American radio executive * Gene Parsons (born 1944), American musician * Geoffrey Parsons (pianist) (1929–1995), Australian classical pianist *

Geoffrey Parsons (lyricist) Geoffrey Parsons (born Geoffrey Claremont Parsons, 7 January 1910, died 22 December 1987, Eastbourne) was an English lyricist. He worked at the Peter Maurice Music Company run by James Phillips, who wrote under the pen name John Turner. The com ...

(1910–1987), English lyricist * Gram Parsons (1946–1973), American singer, songwriter, guitarist and pianist *

Lynn Parsons Lynn Margaret Parsons (born 27 June 1961) is a British disc jockey. Career Having graduated from college with an OND in electronic principles, Parsons started her career working in the television industry, where she was a sound engineer and l ...

, British radio disk jockey *

Robert Parsons (composer) Robert Parsons (ca. 1535 – January 1571/2) was an English composer of the Tudor period who was active during the reigns of King Edward VI, Queen Mary I and Queen Elizabeth I. He is noted for his compositions of church music. Early life Pars ...

(c. 1535 – 1572), English composer * Squire Parsons (born 1949), American gospel singer * Ted Parsons, American drummer

Politicians and activists

* Albert Parsons (1848–1887), American labor activist, anarchist newspaper editor, and orator * Andrew Parsons (American politician) (1817–1856), American politician * Cornelius R. Parsons (1842–1901), New York politician *

Eileen Parsons Eileen Parsons Order of the British Empire, OBE who served as a member of the House of Assembly of the British Virgin Islands, including as Minister for of Health, Education and Welfare, Deputy Premier and Deputy Speaker during the course of her p ...

, British Virgin Islands politician *

Ernie Parsons Ernie Parsons (born June 5, 1946) is a former politician in Ontario, Canada. He was a member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, representing the riding of Prince Edward—Hastings for the Ontario Liberal Party from 1999 to 2007. In 2007 he ...

(born 1946), Canadian JP and politician * Herbert Angas Parsons (1872–1945), South Australian lawyer, politician and judge *

Herbert Parsons (New York politician) Herbert Parsons (October 28, 1869 – September 16, 1925) was a U.S. Representative from New York. Early life Parsons was born in New York City on October 28, 1869. He was the son of John Edward Parsons, a former president of the New York Cit ...

(1869–1925), U.S. Representative from New York *

Isaac Parsons (Virginia politician) Isaac Parsons (January 27, 1752 – August 25, 1796) was an American slave owner, politician, and militia officer in the U.S. state of Virginia (now West Virginia). Parsons served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates representing Ham ...

(1752–1796), Virginia militia officer and Virginia House Delegate * Lewis E. Parsons (1817-1895), American politician, governor of Alabama * Lucy Parsons (1853–1942), American labor organizer, radical socialist and anarcho-communist *

Robert E. Parsons Robert E. Parsons (April 15, 1892 – July 1966) was an American politician who was the 90th lieutenant governor of Connecticut from 1948 to 1949. Early life Robert E. Parsons was born in Unionville, Farmington, Hartford County, Connecticut, Apr ...

(1892-1966), American politician * Sidney Parsons (1893–1955), Canadian politician *

Silas Parsons Silas Parsons (c. 1800 – September 17, 1860) was a justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama from 1849 to 1851.Thomas McAdory Owen, ''History of Alabama and Dictionary of Alabama Biography, Volume 4'' (1921), p. 1324. Early life, education, and c ...

(c. 1800–1860), justice of the Supreme Court of Alabama * Thomas Parsons (politician) (1814–1873), New York politician *

Jamie Parsons James McClary Parsons (1941 – December 26, 2015) was an American civil servant, politician and businessman who served as the Mayor of Juneau, Alaska, from 1991 until 1994. Parsons originally moved to Juneau in 1972 to become the city's first ...

(1941–2015), Alaskan politician

Religion

* Donald J. Parsons, American Episcopal bishop *

Jonathan Parsons Jonathan Parsons (November 30, 1705 – July 19, 1776) was a Christian New England clergyman during the late colonial period and a supporter of the American Revolution. Born in West Springfield, Massachusetts, he was the youngest son of Ebenezer ( ...

(1705–1776), New England clergyman * Robert Persons (1546 – 1610), English Jesuit priest, later known as Robert Parsons

Sports people

Bill Parsons William Raymond Parsons (born August 17, 1948) is an American former professional baseball player, a , , right-handed pitcher from Riverside, California, where he attended Riverside Polytechnic High School. He played four seasons in the major leag ...

(born 1948), American baseball player * Benny Parsons (1941–2007), American NASCAR driver *

Bob Parsons (American football) Robert Herber Parsons (June 29, 1950 – July 8, 2022) was an American football punter and tight end who played twelve seasons in the National Football League (NFL). He played for the Chicago Bears from 1972 to 1983. He later played with ...

(born 1950), American football player * Brian Parsons (1933–1999), English cricketer * Buzz Parsons (born 1950), Canadian soccer player * Casey Parsons, American Major League baseball player *

Chandler Parsons Chandler Evan Parsons (born October 25, 1988) is an American former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for the University of Florida and was drafted by the Houston Rockets with the 38th overall pick in the 2011 NBA draft ...

(born 1988), American basketball player *

David Parsons (cricket coach) David Parsons (born 26 December 1967 in Birmingham, Warwickshire) has been the England and Wales Cricket Board's National Spin Bowling Coach since 27 January 2006. Parsons attended King Edward VI Five Ways Grammar School for Boys at Bartley Green ...

(born 1967), English cricket coach *

David Parsons (racing driver) David John "Skippy" Parsons (born 17 May 1959 in Devonport, Tasmania), is a retired Australian racing driver, who, while never a full-time racing driver, drove for some of the leading racing teams in Australia including the Holden Dealer Team, ...

(born 1959), Australian racing driver * Donald Parsons, businessman and owner of the Pittsburgh Penguins *

Eric Parsons Eric George Parsons (9 November 1923 – 7 February 2011) was a footballer who played for West Ham United, Chelsea and Brentford in England. Career An outside forward and crowd favourite whose blistering pace earned him the nickname "the Ra ...

(born 1923), English footballer * Geoff Parsons (born 1964), Scottish high jumper * Herbert Parsons (cricketer) (1875–1937), Australian cricket player for Victoria *

Jayne Parsons Jayne Parsons (born 18 March 1962 in Lower Hutt) is a New Zealand paralympic cycle sport, cyclist who New Zealand at the 2008 Summer Paralympics, won a bronze medal at the 2008 Summer Paralympics along with tandem partner Annaliisa Farrell in t ...

(born 1962), New Zealand paralympic cyclist * Johnnie Parsons (1918–1984), American race car driver *

Johnny Parsons John Wayne Parsons1975 Indianapolis 500 Radio Broadcast - Indianapolis Motor Speedway Radio Network (May 25, 1975) (born August 26, 1944 in Van Nuys, California) is an American race car driver. He is the son of 1950 Indianapolis 500 winner John ...

(born 1944), American race car driver *

Jordan Parsons Jordan Parsons (August 26, 1990 – May 4, 2016) was an American mixed martial artist who formerly competed in Bellator's featherweight division. A professional competitor since 2010, Parsons had also previously competed for the Championship Fi ...

(1990−2016) American mixed martial artist * Keith Parsons (born 1973), English cricketer * King Parsons (born 1945), American professional wrestler * Liam Parsons (born 1977), Canadian rower *

Lindsay Parsons Lindsay William Parsons (20 March 1946 – 12 April 2019) was an English professional footballer who played in The Football League for Bristol Rovers and Torquay United. Playing career Parsons is from the Barton Hill area of Bristol and played ...

(born 1946), English footballer *

Lucas Parsons Lucas John Kendall Parsons (born 4 October 1969) is an Australian former professional golfer. Parsons was born in Orange, New South Wales. As an amateur, he won both the Australian and New Zealand Amateur Championships in 1991. He turned prof ...

(born 1989), Australian professional golfer * Micah Parsons (born 1999), American football player * Phil Parsons (born 1957), American NASCAR driver * Rachel Parsons (born 1997), American figure skater *

Sarah Parsons Sarah Sturgis Parsons (born July 27, 1987) is an American ice hockey player. She won a bronze medal at the 2006 Winter Olympics. She was a member of Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New H ...

(born 1987), American ice hockey player * Sarah Wilhite Parsons (born 1995), American volleyball player * Zane Parsons (born 1976), Australian rules footballer

Others

Abraham Parsons Abraham Parsons (died 1785) was an English commercial consul and traveller. His account of his travels in the Middle East were published in 1808. Life Abraham's father was a captain of merchant ships, and In early life he visited many countries in ...

(died 1785), English commercial consul and traveller *Sir

Anthony Parsons Sir Anthony Derrick Parsons (9 September 1922 – 12 August 1996) was a British diplomat, ambassador to Iran at the time of the Iranian Revolution and Permanent Representative to the UN at the time of the Falklands War. Career Anthony P ...

(1922–1996), British diplomat, ambassador to Iran and to the United Nations *

Bob Parsons Robert Ralph Parsons (born November 27, 1950) is an American entrepreneur, billionaire, and philanthropist. In 1997, he founded the GoDaddy group of companies, including domain name registrar GoDaddy.com, reseller registrar Wild West Domains, a ...

(born 1950), American entrepreneur *

Chick Parsons Charles Thomas "Chick" Parsons Jr. (April 22, 1902 – May 12, 1988) was an American businessman, diplomat, and decorated World War II veteran. Pre-war years Parsons was born in Shelbyville, Tennessee, moved frequently, and spent part of his yo ...

(1900–1988), American businessman and diplomat *

Clere Parsons Clere Parsons (1908 - 1931) was an English poet, born in India. He was educated at Christ Church, Oxford, Christ Church, University of Oxford, and edited the 1928 edition of ''Oxford Poetry''. His only collection, ''Poems'', was published after his ...

, (1908–1931), English poet * Eliza Parsons, (1739–1811), English gothic horror writer *

Kathryn Parsons Kathryn Parsons is a British tech entrepreneur. She is the co-founder and co-CEO of Decoded, a London-based "code and data education and digital transformation company". Decoded launched in 2011 with its signature one-day course which claimed t ...

(born 1982), British tech entrepreneur * Louella Parsons (1881–1972), American gossip columnist * Mary Elizabeth Parsons (1859-1947), American author * Martha Parsons (1869–1965), American businesswoman *

Randy Parsons Randy Parsons (born 1965) is an American luthier whose client list includes Jack White, Jimmy Page, Sammy Hagar, Death Cab for Cutie, Peter Frampton, Joe Perry, and Modest Mouse. Parsons uses hand tools and traditional guitar building methods, w ...

(born 1965), American luthier *

Rehtaeh Parsons On April 4, 2013, Rehtaeh Parsons (, ; December 9, 1995 – April 7, 2013), a 17-year-old former Cole Harbour District High School student, attempted suicide by hangingSamuel Parsons (1844–1923), American landscape architect * Samuel Holden Parsons (1737–1789), American lawyer

Fictional characters

Ellen Parsons Ellen Parsons is a fictional character on the American legal thriller series ''Damages''. The character was created by the writer trio of Glenn Kessler, Todd A. Kessler, and Daniel Zelman. Ellen's transformation from ambitious, idealistic and so ...

, one of the main characters in the TV series ''Damages'' *Kimberly Parsons (portrayed by Daniella Evangelista]), a character from the movie

Cabin by the Lake ''Cabin by the Lake'' is a horror TV movie released in 2000. It tells the story of Stanley, played by Judd Nelson, a script writer who begins killing girls for research for a movie he is writing, where the villain does the same thing. A 2001 seque ...

and its sequel "Return to Cabin by the Lake" *Nicky Parsons (portrayed by Julia Stiles), a character from the Bourne (film series) *Rachel Parsons, a character from the movie Gothika

References

{{Surname English-language surnames Occupational surnames