An English and Scottish surname, Spence comes from the Latin term ’dispendere’ and the Old French term ‘despense’ which refer to distributing or handing out something. A Middle English term ‘spense’ referred to a storeroom or pantry. The spelling variations for Spence include Spencley, Spense, Despenser, Spens, Spencer and Spenser. In England most with the Spence surname live in the northern regions, especially in Yorkshire, Lancashire, Durham, Northumberland and into the city of London. In Scotland the Spence surname is all across the country. Along the eastern coastal counties the family name is most populated. The area include Aberdeenshire, Angus, Fife, Midlothian, Lanarkshire and the Shetland and Orkney Islands. Within the United States the Spence family name originated in Pennsylvania, North Carolina, Virginia, Ohio, Tennessee, Georgia, New York, Maryland, Delaware and Alabama. Famous: Russell Spence (English race car driver), Lewis Spence (journalist), Steve Spence (champion long-distance runner), Fiona Spence (actress from England), George Spence (footballer from Scotland), John Spence (musician), Alan Spence (poet from Scotland), Gerry Spence (a winning high profile trial lawyer), Louie Spence (professional dancer), Jonathan Spence (historical researcher and writer) and Joe Spence (footballer from England).