A German and English surname, Tanner comes from the Old English term ‘tannin’ which referred to treatment of animal skins to be used as leather goods. A variations for Tanner is Tannor. A German form of the spelling would be Danner. In England the Tanner surname is all across England and Wales. The greater populations reside in the southern end, mostly in Kent, Hampshire, Gloucestershire and Somerset. In Scotland many Tanner families live in the southwest areas of Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, Renfrewshire and Wigtownshire. Within the United States the Tanner families mostly settled in Ohio, Georgia, Illinois, Rhode Island, New York, Texas, California, Florida, Tennessee, Virginia, Michigan, Mississippi and Arkansas. Famous: Joseph R. Tanner (astronaut), Charles W. Tanner (professional baseball player), Erin Tanner (singer), Nick Tanner (English footballer), Roscoe Tanner (champion tennis player), Robin Tanner (English artist) and Libby Tanner (actress from Australia).