Etymology
From Middle English herder, herdere, hurder (attested as a surname), an alteration of Middle English herde (“herder, herdsman”), from Old English hyrde, hierde (“herder”), from Proto-West Germanic *hirdī, from Proto-Germanic *hirdijaz, equivalent to herd + -er. Doublet of herd ("herder"), as in cowherd, goatherd, shepherd, etc.