bishop

From Middle English bischop, from Old English bisċop, tracing back through Vulgar Latin (e)biscopus to classical Latin episcopus, itself borrowed from Greek epískopos, 'overseer' — a compound of epí, 'over,' and skopós, 'watcher.' The word was used in both Greek and Latin as a general term and as a title for civil officers, long before it settled into its churchly sense.

What started as a general word for an overseer — civil or otherwise — narrowed over centuries as it passed through Latin and Germanic tongues into English, ending up as a specific rank within the Christian church. Tellingly, the Tyndale Bible chose the plain English word 'overseer' instead, showing translators were aware of the original meaning even as 'bishop' had become the standard churchly term.

The surname Bishop comes directly from this word, making it an eponymous source for family names rather than the other way around.