Semaan

Semaan (Syriac Aramaic: ܫܡܥܘܢ ; Arabic: سمعان, Semʻān) (also spelled Sem'an, Semán, Simaan, Sim'an, Samaan, Sam'an) is one of the oldest Christian surnames in existence and is mainly found in the Levant area of the Middle East. It is derived from the Semitic root word/verb sema or shema, which means “to hear”; thus, the meaning of Semaan becomes “the one who hears or listens” in both Syriac Aramaic and Arabic. Its equivalent in Hebrew is שִׁמְעוֹן (Shimon or Shim'on), which also has the same meaning. The Greek transliteration is Σιμων (Simon) or Συμεών (Symeon), and, when Latinized, it becomes Simon or Simeon.