What’s In A Name? Turns out, quite a lot. Take a look at this map of surnames from around the World. We found it strangely compelling.
The most common surname in the United States is Smith. Actually, the most common surname in just about every English-speaking country is Smith. As you may already suspect, the last name “Smith” refers to the blacksmith trade. Isn’t it kind of interesting that a few Smith ancestors from the Middle Ages were likely named for their occupational roles in society, only to eventually give rise to one of the most common last names in the world? There are 2.3million Smiths in the United States alone, very few of whom are metal workers.
Last names were first used in China in 2852 BC account of the census, and this concept eventually spread to the rest of the world. Truthfully, last names are fairly recent inventions in some parts of the world, where sometimes only nobles were once given family names, or other times there were simply different ways to refer to people.
Surnames present us with an interesting slice of anthropology because they contain all kinds of information about our ancestors and the kinds of societies they once lived in. Generally speaking, last names can be sorted into five categories based on what they were originally derived from: place names; occupations; personal characteristics; the names of parents or ancestors; and patronage (in other words, being named after a patron, not someone you were directly related to).
- Miracle.
- Dankworth.
- Relish.
- MacQuoid.
- Loughty.
- Birdwhistle.
- Berrycloth.
- Tumbler.
Legendary saxophonist and composer Johnny Dankworth will be turning in his grave.
